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Caesarean births hit record high in 2007
Newborn babies lie in a baby room of a hospital in Shanghai, July 10, 2006.
Credit: Reuters/Stringer
WASHINGTON |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly 1.4 million babies born in the United States in 2007 were delivered by Caesarean section, a record U.S. high and a larger number than in most other industrialized nations, health officials said on Tuesday.
In 2007, nearly one-third of all births were Caesarean deliveries, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report, noting large rises in all racial, ethnic and age groups over 10 years.
The benefits and risks of Caesarean delivery, which involves major abdominal surgery, have been the subject of intense debate for more than a quarter of a century.
In addition to health and safety risks for mothers and infants, hospital charges for a Caesarean delivery are almost double those for a vaginal delivery, according to the CDC.
Caesarean delivery was the most frequently performed surgery in the United States in 2006, it said.
After a drop in the early 1990s, the Caesarean rate rose from 21 percent of all births in 1996 to an all-time high of 32 percent in 2007, the report said.
The number of Caesarean births rose 71 percent from 797,119 in 1996 to 1.367 million in 2007, it said. There was a big jump among women under the age of 25 beginning around 2000.
Some of the increase may be related to a rise in multiple births and other non-medical factors such as older mothers, the mother's choice and the doctor's practice, the CDC said.
Caesarean births rose in all states and the District of Columbia but the rates varied widely. Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Nevada, Rhode Island and Washington had increases of more than 70 percent.
(Editing by John O'Callaghan)
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Updated Tue. Jun. 23 2009 12:25 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Researchers in the U.S. say they may have found a new and better source for harvesting stem cells: the placentas that are often discarded after birth.
The research from Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland found there are far more stem cells in placentas than in umbilical cord blood, the traditional source for stem cells, and they can be safely extracted for transplantation.
“Yes, the stem cells are there; yes, they are viable; and yes, we can get them out,” declared Dr. Frans Kuypers, one of the scientists who led the research with fellow scientist Vladimir Serikov.
The study was conducted using placentas from healthy women undergoing elective Caesarean section. It will be the feature story in the July 2009 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine.
The scientists said it is highly likely the cells could be used in therapies to cure chronic blood-related disorders such as sickle cell disease, thalassemia, and leukemia.
One of the limits of umbilical cord blood is that the stem cells it contains are few in number. That makes the likelihood that they can be used to cure a blood disorder in adults fairly slim. Researchers hope that stem cells from the placenta will provide a bigger supply.
Kuypers explained that even when a patient receives a cord blood transplant, there may not be enough stem cells in the umbilical cord to successfully treat their disorder.
“The greater supply of stem cells in placentas will likely increase the chance that an HLA (human leukocyte antigen) matched unit of stem cells engrafts, making stem cell transplants available to more people. The more stem cells, the bigger the chance of success,” said Kuypers.
Kuypers and Serikov have developed a patent-pending method that will allow the freezing of placentas to store them in a way that allows them to later be defrosted and to enable the extraction of viable stem cells. The method will make it possible for companies to gather, ship and store placentas in a central location.
“We’re looking for a partnership with industry to get placenta-derived stem cells in large quantities to the clinic,” said Kuypers in a statement.
He added that while more research is needed to explore the maximum potential of this latest discovery, he is optimistic his work will lead to cures.
“Someday, we will be able to save a lot more kids and adults from these horrific blood disor
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