Umbilical cord arterial blood pH an indicator of rise in cesarean section rate due to false-positive indications by CTG

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3126/ajms.v15i1.58326

Keywords:

Umbilical cord blood; pH; Cesarean section; Neonatal outcome; Cardiotocography

Abstract

Background: Cesarean section rate is rising globally, now accounting for more than 1 in 5 (21%) of all childbirths. This number is set to continue increasing over the coming decade unless the factors which increase the rate of cesarean section are kept in check. Intrapartum cardiotocography (CTG) has shown a false-positive rate of cesarean section. This has been correlated with neonatal umbilical cord blood pH analysis.

Aims and Objectives: (1) Correlation of non-reassuring CTG, resulting in cesarean section with umbilical cord arterial blood pH. (2) To find the false-positive indications of cesarean section due to CTG.

Materials and Methods: This observational study was conducted in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of SKIMS, Soura, from September 2020 to July 2022 over a period of 22 months. Women with a gestational age of more than 34 weeks with singleton pregnancy were included in the study. Those with CTG-documented fetal distress were subjected to umbilical cord arterial blood pH monitoring.

Results: A total of 85 patients underwent cesarean sections in view of fetal distress documented by CTG, but only 45 neonates had actual distress as documented by umbilical cord blood sampling.

Conclusion: Social and non-medical factors no doubt have caused an alarming rise in cesarean sections, but at the same time, there are some iatrogenic causes, namely CTG, which lead to the rise in the cesarean section rate due to false-positive indications. This has been further supported by the fact that the pH of the umbilical cord blood of neonates with intrapartum non-reassuring CTG does not correspond to fetal acidemia in all cases. Hence, a significant number of cesarean sections is being done for false-positive indications.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
Abstract
105
PDF
172

Downloads

Published

2024-01-01

How to Cite

Ruqiya Rashid, Bashir, K., & Faizah Mufti. (2024). Umbilical cord arterial blood pH an indicator of rise in cesarean section rate due to false-positive indications by CTG. Asian Journal of Medical Sciences, 15(1), 108–112. https://doi.org/10.3126/ajms.v15i1.58326

Issue

Vol. 15 No. 1 (2024)

Section

Original Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2023 Asian Journal of Medical Sciences

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. The journal holds copyright and publishes the work under a Creative Commons CC-BY-NC license that permits use, distribution and reprduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. The journal should be recognised as the original publisher of this work.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).