Rising Trend in Non-Indicated Caesarean Deliveries: Can the Trend be Reversed?

Abstract

The rate of caesarean deliveries in most countries with a high coverage of facility births largely exceeds what is considered medically justifiable. In 2014, the Americas had the highest rates, with almost a third (32%) for the North American countries, and 40.5% for Latin America and The Caribbean (LAC).1 The rates show a strong annual temporal increases of around 2%; if this staggering trend continues, more than 50% of births will be by caesarean in the LAC region in 2025.