Caesarean section is a delivery programmed by doctors that can happen before or after labor has started.
The most common is that it is scheduled for before the contractions appear, being more comfortable for the woman. However, it can also be performed after contractions have started and drinking shows clear signs that you are ready to be born.
Step by step of traditional cesarean
The first step of a cesarean is the anesthesia that is given to the pregnant woman's spine, when she is in a sitting position. Then, a catheter is placed in the epidural space to facilitate medication administration and a tube is placed to contain the urine.
The doctor will make a cut approximately 10 to 12 cm wide near the bikini line, and will cut even more 6 layers of fabric until reaching the baby. Then the doctor pulls the baby, which will not hurt, but it can be a strange feeling.
When the baby is removed from the belly the neonatologist pediatrician must assess whether the baby is breathing correctly and then the nurse can already show the baby to the mother, while the doctor also removes the placenta. The baby will be properly cleaned, weighed and measured and only afterwards can it be given to the mother for breastfeeding.
The final part of the surgery is the closing of the cut. At this point the doctor will sew all layers of tissue cut for delivery, which can take an average of 30 minutes.
How is normal cesarean
A new form of childbirth that has been widespread, is the normal cesarean section, which consists of waiting for labor to begin, and after doctors cut the abdomen, the baby has the possibility of leaving alone, with minimal medical intervention. In this case, the doctor performs the cut until it reaches the uterus and only positions the baby for its exit through the abdomen and with the contractions of the uterus it is 'pushed' to be born.
In addition, the mother has the possibility to see the baby being born because she can see her own belly, since the separation tissue, which is used in traditional cesarean section, is not placed.
This is an attempt to have a more humanized delivery, being closer to normal delivery, but with anesthesia and without fear that the baby will not pass through the vagina. This new type of delivery is safe, but it cannot always be performed by any medical team, and it is necessary to talk to the doctor about the desire to have this type of delivery, before labor begins.
When cesarean section is indicated
The main indication for cesarean delivery is the mother's desire to choose this method of birth for the baby, but some other situations that highlight the need for a cesarean delivery are:
- Maternal disease that prevents normal delivery, such as high and positive HIV, active genital herpes, cancer, severe heart or lung disease; Diseases in the baby that make normal delivery impossible, such as myelomeningocele, hydrocephalus, macrocephaly, heart or liver outside the body; In case of placenta previa or accreta, detachment of the placenta, baby too small for gestational age, heart disease; When the woman has had more than 2 cesarean sections, removed part of the uterus, needed uterine reconstruction involving the entire endometrium, rupture of the uterus in a previous moment; When the baby does not turn and is crossed in the woman's uterus; In case of pregnancy of twins or more babies; When the normal labor is parked, being prolonged and without complete dilation.
In these cases, even if the parents want a normal delivery, cesarean section is the safest option, being recommended by doctors.
