Caesarean Section

Risks and Complications

Caesarean section is considered relatively safe. It does, however, pose a higher risk of some maternal complications than does a vaginal delivery. If you have a caesarean section, expect a longer recovery time than you would have after a vaginal delivery.

Serious complications within 60 days of vaginal and caesarean births (per 1,000 women)

Medical complication requiring rehospitalization	After vaginal delivery	After caesarean section
All complications	10.0	17.0
Uterine infection	2.9	5.2
Surgical wounds	0.1	3.9
Hemorrhage, heavy blood loss	2.4	2.9
Gallbladder disease	2.2	2.8
Genital or urinary complications	1.3	1.7
Heart or lung (cardiopulmonary) complications	0.6	1.3
Blood clot (thromboembolism)	0.3	0.9

Lydon-Rochelle M, et al. (2000). Association between method of delivery and maternal rehospitalization. JAMA, 283(18): 2411–2416. Adapted with permission from the American Medical Association.

Other caesarean risks include:

• Nausea, vomiting, and severe headache after the delivery (related to anesthesia and the abdominal procedure).
• Infection of the incision.
• Infant injury during the delivery.
• Infant lung immaturity, if the due date has been miscalculated.
• Maternal death (very rare). The risk of death for women who have a planned caesarean delivery is very low (about 6 in 100,000). For emergency caesarean deliveries, the rate is higher, though still very rare (about 18 in 100,000).¹

While most women recover from both caesarean and vaginal births without complications, it takes more time and special care to heal from caesarean section, which is a major surgery. Women who have a caesarean section without complications spend about 3 days in the hospital, compared with about 2 days for women who deliver vaginally. Full recovery after a caesarean delivery takes 4 to 6 weeks; full recovery after a vaginal delivery takes about 1 to 2 weeks.

Long-term risks of caesarean section

Women who have a uterine caesarean scar have slightly increased long-term risks. These risks, which increase further with each additional caesarean delivery, include:²

• Breaking open of the incision scar during a later pregnancy or labour (uterine rupture). For more information, see the topic Vaginal Birth After Caesarean (VBAC).
• Placenta previa, the growth of the placenta low in the uterus, blocking the cervix.
• Placenta accreta, placenta increta, placenta percreta (least to most severe), the growth of the placenta deeper into the uterine wall than normal, which can lead to severe bleeding after childbirth, sometimes requiring a hysterectomy.

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Author:	Kathe Gallagher, MSW Carrie Henley	Last Updated: June 16, 2006
Medical Review:	Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH - Family Medicine Kirtly Jones, MD - Obstetrics and Gynecology Deborah A. Penava, BA, MD, FRCSC, MPH - Obstetrics and Gynecology
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