Neonatal outcomes of planned vaginal delivery versus planned cesarean section for breech presentation at term: Population-based study on 546,842 breech births across the United States between 2008 and 2017

Introduction

Over the last several decades, cesarean delivery has been recommended as the safest mode of delivery for breech presentations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of planned vaginal births with planned cesarean births in breech presenting fetuses.

Methods

This retrospective population-based cohort study utilized data from the United States’ Period Linked Birth-Infant Death Public Use Files from 2008 to 2017. All term singleton breech deliveries of a live baby without congenital anomalies were identified (n = 546,842) and divided into two cohorts: women who had a planned vaginal birth (n = 116,828), and women who had a planned cesarean section (n = 430,014). Multivariate logistic regression models, adjusted for maternal baseline characteristics, examined the associations between the planned delivery method and neonatal outcomes.

Results

It was observed that 26.14 % of the planned vaginal birth cohort had a vaginal delivery. In adjusted analyses, undergoing a planned vaginal birth for breech delivery was associated with an increased risk of adverse neonatal outcomes including infant death, OR 1.32, 95 % CI 1.16–1.52, admission to NICU,1.23, 1.19–1.27, ventilation support at 〈 6 h of life, 1.47, 1.42–1.52, ventilation support at 〉 6 h of life, 1.19, 1.08–1.31, and Apgar score of ≤3 at 5 min, 2.27, 2.06–2.50.

Conclusion

In women carrying fetuses in breech presentation, having a planned vaginal birth had a low success rate and was associated with increased risk of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Women should be carefully counselled on the risks associated with breech vaginal delivery as well as the low success rate of vaginal delivery.