Does Having a C-Section Create Long Term Repercussions?
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There are two fairly common surgeries that women may be exposed to during their lifetime. One of these is a C-Section, and the other is a hysterectomy. Now new studies are beginning to suggest that there may be a correlation between these two.
A C-Section
Some women for a variety of reasons may not be able to go through the normal process of childbirth. When this occurs, a surgeon will have to surgically open up the woman's abdomen to gain access to the uterus which then has to be cut in order to retrieve the infant.
A Hysterectomy
A hysterectomy is the surgical removal of a woman's uterus. There can be several different reasons why this procedure may be necessary. The most common causes are a pain as a result of fibroids, uterine cancer, or for uterine bleeding. There are many other causes that can create the need for a hysterectomy.
While both of these procedures can be independently necessary researchers are now indicating that a C-section could present some long term repercussions. One of these is that a C-Section could create the need for a hysterectomy later on in life.
This new information is based on what Aalborg University in Denmark researchers found in conjunction with the Boston Ariadne Labs.
This was a study that included 7,685 women based on a cohort study that was Danish registry based. This registry was comprised of women who had given a first time birth between the first of January 1993 and no later than the 31st December 2012. Plus, they had to have been subjected a hysterectomy between the first of January 1996 up until the 31st December 2012. The hysterectomy had to be non-gravid and benign.
The Findings
The conclusions that the researchers came to were as follows...
· Out of those that had given birth to a child and also later had a hysterectomy 50% of them were more likely to have experienced a C-section birth of their baby compared to the population on the whole.
· Women who had experienced a C-section then later in life had a hysterectomy indicated that in excess of 16% of them had complications post op. This was in comparison to the women who experienced vaginal child birth. The complications included infection or bleeding. What also was discovered that in all likeliness over 30% had to be re-operated on.
· It was also discovered from this study that for those women who had at least 2 C-Sections and later had to undergo a hysterectomy, that during this procedure they were in need of blood transfusions during the procedure. The likeliness of this was 96%.
All of these findings combined are strong indicators that C-Sections could lead to the need for a hysterectomy later in life, and if so that there could be higher risks of complications in regards to the hysterectomy for these women.
These findings should not persuade a woman not to have a C-section, but it should make the professionals more astute at making the decision to perform this procedure as it is believed by some experts that more than half of the C-Sections performed could be avoided.