Study of incidence, trends and determinants of caesarean section in tertiary care hospital of Rajasthan, India

Background: Lower Segment Caesarean section (LSCS) is recommended when vaginal delivery might pose a risk to the mother or baby. Worldwide rise in LSCS rate during the last three decades, has been the cause of alarm and needs an in-depth study.Methods: It was a retrospective, observational study conducted in Obstetrics and Gynecology department of Jhalawar medical college, Jhalawar. Data were obtained from medical record database of patients admitted for deliveries from October 2017 to March 2018 over period of six months. The total number of patients delivered and the number of LSCS done were counted to find the incidence of LSCS in our hospital. Age, parity and gestational age of the patients who underwent LSCS were tabulated.Results: In present study the incidence of LSCS was 31.1%. Of these cases 91% belonged to age group 20 -29 yrs. Emergency LSCS (72.1%) and primary LSCS (66.5%) were more common. The commonest indication of LSCS was previous LSCS in 35% followed by foetal distress, breech presentation, severe oligohydrominos and pre-eclampsia.Conclusions: In present study LSCS rate was high as compared to the WHO standard. The scheme like Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) may have a great impact on accepting institutional deliveries by poor women which may be a reason of the increase of LSCS in India. Utilization of antenatal care, better doctor patient communication, doctor’s commitment to reduce the rate of LSCS, may help to reduce the increasing rate of caesarean delivery