Experts Outline Childbirth Risks, Options

Childbirth options have been in the news often in the last few weeks. CBS News reported this week on a Lancet editorial that called home births riskier for babies. The editorial quoted a recent study on neonatal death rates. Though low, deaths were two to three times as high at home as in the hospital. An August 2 Time magazine article also discussed childbirth issues. It quoted new guidelines from the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The guidelines say women who had a prior cesarean section should get the chance to have a vaginal birth next time. Induction of labor may be another cause of C-sections. Time quotes a new study that found C-section rates in first-time births doubled when labor was induced. Guidelines support induction after 41 weeks of pregnancy. But the study found that about 4 out of 10 women who did not meet guidelines had labor induced anyway.