Vaginal birth after cesarean delivery

Abstract

VBAC is considered safe and is often successful in carefully selected populations of women. Women with prior CDs are given the option of elective repeat CD or a trial of labor; neither option is risk free. Less morbidity is encountered in women with successful VBACs versus those with elective repeat CD. Patients who undergo successful trials of labor experience fewer blood transfusions, fewer postpartum infections, and shorter hospital stays and generally have no increased perinatal mortality. The high CD rate begins with the high frequency of the first CD. Therefore, a concerted effort should be made to decrease primary CDs. Paul and Miller remind us of the importance of the decision to proceed with the initial CD in their statement, "once a cesarean, always a scar (p 1907)." Many patients present for prenatal care with one or more prior uterine scars. Careful and thoughtful counseling of patients with a previous CD regarding the risks and benefits of a labor trial based on the current available literature is prudent. Pitkin's editorial in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1991 stated, "Without question, the most remarkable change in obstetric practice over the last decade involves management of the woman with a prior cesarean delivery (p 939)." Controversies regarding the management of women with scarred uteri remain. In his review of the CD controversy, Flamm leaves us with an important thought: "A woman with a prior cesarean is at increased risk regardless of her mode of birth, and eliminating VBAC will not eliminate the risks. Vigilance with respect to primary cesarean delivery is the only way to avoid this dilemma (p 315)."