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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (June 9, 2005)
Gelato • Cheese Cakes • Pies • Eclaires and repeat cesareans — often for reasons of convenience, impatience or cold hard cash — is simply unhealthy and unsound. “The true need for cesarean is so small,” Clark says, her dark brow furrowing behind her glasses as she unhooks her overalls for River, her 16-month- old son, to breastfeed. “And in our country it’s extremely high.” Misconceptions Few medical providers in Eugene’s birthing community would argue that cesarean sections don’t have a legitimate place in obstetrics. In a case of uterine rupture, which occurs in about two percent of all births, a cesarean is often necessary. Cesareans are also the safest option when the mother has an active herpes outbreak or medical complications that block the cervix. Prior to modern cesarean methods, many of the babies and mothers with these complications would have died. But today’s mothers are requesting and receiving cesareans for a plethora of other rea- sons, including convenience and (mistakenly) safety. “I think that’s a common misconception for women that cesarean sections are safer, and that they’ll save the baby,” Clark says. “Well, the U.S. is 27th in infant mortality rate in the world.” The Netherlands, Sweden and Finland, to name a few, all have significantly lower infant mortality rates than the U.S. Their cesarean rates are between 11 and 16 percent. Under the misconception that c-sections are safer, more and more women plan their deliver- ies in advance, says Syndee Carlson, the Labor and Delivery Patient Care Coordinator at McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center in Springfield. “It is true that c-sections have become simpler and easier,” says Stafl, who’s delivered babies for more than 20 years. “Nevertheless, it’s still a major surgery. The more c-sections you have, the higher the risk is.” Those risks include infections, internal bleeding and scar tissue, which can lead to problems later in life, he says. “Women who’ve had a cesarean have a higher chance of needing other gynecological surgeries in the future.” And according to the CDC, women who have emergency or elective c-sections are four times more likely to die during childbirth than women giving birth vaginally. Carlson has also seen an increase in women who plan “social inductions” — chemical inductions done for non-medical rea- sons. For example, many women tell their doctors when they’d like to give birth. “My husband can get these three days off work, so I’d really like to have the baby now,” Carlson says, imitating a patient. But it’s not just patients who have jumped on the convenience wagon. It’s doctors, too, Clark says. “They’re on a timeline. Even for women who’ve never had cesareans, [doctors] like to hurry it up, and then that leads to cesare- ans.” Because obstetricians are unwilling to wait out a long labor, she says that chemical Morning Pasteries • Parfaits • Truffles Favorite. Give Him a Sweet Life Treat! Ta r t s • B r o w n i e s • C o o k i e s LENNON, RIVER, SANQUINETTA, SALILA, ANDREW & DAKOTA Be Your Dad’s S w e et L i f e 755 Monroe St. • 683-5676 • www.sweetlifedesserts.com Hours: Sun - Wed till 10:00pm • Thur - Sat till 11:00pm JUNE 9, 2005 13
