Cesarean section in the management of breech presentation

Abstract

In a retrospective analysis of 275 consecutive deliveries of singleton infants in a breech presentation, the liberal use of cesarean section (58.2 per cent) resulted in a corrected perinatal mortality rate of zero for both vaginal and abdominal deliveries of infants weighing over 2,500 grams although perinatal morbidity was greater for vaginal deliveries (5.6 per cent) compared to cesarean section (0.8 per cent). Comparison of perinatal morbidity for delivery of infants weighing between 1,000 and 2,500 grams in a breech presentation suggests that cesarean section is the method of choice for delivery of infants in this weight range in a breech presentation.