1st Birth Statistics

[Rochwen]

I've just been reading the forceps vs ventouse thread and have thus been wondering just how often intervention is needed during first births.

So, let's start a poll.

In my NHS ante-natal class there were 9 women (including myself).

3 c/s
2 forceps assisted births
3 ventouse assisted births
1 non-instrumental birth

In my NCT ante-natal class there were 6 women.
2 c/s
1 forceps assisted births
3 ventouse assisted births

I'm no expert but it seems just from this small sample that the odds of having a totally non-assisted birth for your first child are very small. We can't all have been just unlucky.

The hosptial concerned is in Scotland and about average in Scotland in c/s etc.

I'll be interested what the stats were in your ante-natal groups and/or just your own experience for your first birth.

6 of us in nct class

1 planned c/s (twins, one breech)
1 emergency c/s
4 non-instrumental

so, pretty good given your stats

I didn't do NCT, so no stats I'm afraid, but my 1st birth had no intervention. They were getting twitchy though, as 2nd stage was taking all of 45 minutes!

Was horrified, however, at the number of CS deliveries during my recent stay on a post-natal ward.

Ward of 4 beds, 6 patients passed through in the 30hrs I was there. I was the ONLY non-CS delivery. Wondered what the hell was going on in that hospital. Rumour has it their CS rate was 38% in early 2007.

NCT class

8 women

3 C/S elected
2 C/S emergency
1 forceps
1 venteuse
1 unassisted

My births

2 unassisted
1 forceps due to footling breach

it's not a case of being unlucky. 1st births are usually a lot longer than subsequent births. long births, long labours, are problematic for hospitals. they want you to work within their time frames, not you and your baby's. so they hurry you along, encourage you to take interventions etc.

I hear what you are saying and I am sure that's one of the reasons, however, from speaking to the women in my two groups it seemed that some of them actually did labour for quite long, one for almost three days, eeek, and she actually begged them to do something. They all did say that they got the interventions because the baby either didn't come out or was distressed and had to come out quickly, so if a cons would say your baby is in danger then how would you argue and say you'd rather wait longer? I certainly wouldn't. My c/s was because my dd was premature and breech and her water had broken so they couldn't turn her.

I have to admit that I was very surprised that so few of us, well one out of 14, managed a totally non assisted birth, esp as we were told in both classes that we should expect a straight forward birth. Well, were we surprised when that didn't happen. I remember that c/s weren't even discussed in either class.

18 in my NHS antenatal class

15 non-instrumental births
1 either forceps or ventouse (can't remember exactly)
2 c/s (both elective for breech babies)

A lot of have gone on to have 2nd babies and there has been a much higher rate of c/s and assisted deliveries.

In my NCT class there were 6

4 c/s (1 scheduled breech, 1 emergency footling breech (found baby breech when labour was well advanced), 2 other emergency c/s after long labours)
1 ventouse
1 non-instrumental

I lost touch with most of the NHS people, but the two I did keep in touch with were

1 c/s (scheduled initially for breech and then for something else although I forget what)
1 non-instrumental (although was induced, but all went very smoothly)

Message withdrawn

i laboured for 25 hours with first and was still allowed to go on to deliver unassisted.

out of four of us who gave birth at the same time, only 1 had an assisted delivery (forceps)

There were 6 of us in my hypnobirthing class.

1 (me) induction, without epidural or further interventions

5 C-sections

no stats im afraid but with my 1st (and only so far) birth i had forceps assisted in the end, was taken down for emergency c/s but then dillated fully, ds was nearly 10lb and because they had already administrated the epidural they decided forceps were needed.
it wasnt a bad birth experience but not as i had wanted it to go, i guess with it being my first i just went with what i was told, but with my next i would definatelly like to have an "au natural" birth without any intervention! (if thats even possible nowadays?? seems like most women end up with some intervention.........

My local unit had an unassisted birth rate (ie no forceps, ventouse, induction or cesarean) of 17.2% in 05-06 Their cesarean rate for first timers is about 32% which frankly I find pretty shocking.

I only bumped into two people from my antenatal classes, they had both had c/sections (one had attempted a VBAC but it wasn't to be, the other was a first-time mum like me). I was induced but no forceps or ventouse.

Our NCt group (6 couples)
1 elective C/s (she was scared of giving birth)
1 successfull Vbac
1 emergency C/s
3 natural, non instrumental intervention births (2 with epidurals)
IYKWIM

My NCT class...
1 x CS (planned)
1 x forceps
4 x non assisted (one was me)

I think ...

In my NCT class there were 7 couples:

1 emergency c-section
3 inductions (all for high bp or pre-eclampsia!) leading to forceps delivery (I was one of these)
3 unassisted deliveries (one of which was a planned home birth)

In my class of 8 - 3 emergency caesarians after failed inductions, 1 home birth, 2 assisted with ventouse/forceps, 2 natural labour after inductions - so apart from home birth all had some intervention of some sort.

NCT class:

4 c/s (1 elective (breech), 3 emergency (1 breech, 1 twins - attempted normal delivery but it just wasn't happening, 1 foetal distress))

1 ventouse (me)

1 unassisted vaginal delivery

My NHS group fared better, esp in terms of c/s rate (only 1 out of about 8 people I kept in touch with), but I can't remember all the details re ventouse/forceps etc.

In my class of 6 we had 3 normal deliveries (including one homebirth), 2 forceps and one c/s (fetal distress). This was in Edinburgh.

5 in my class

I had an emergency CS, after epi and 5 top ups as the tube had half come out so stuff was going in but not going to the right place! 15 hour labour.
1 other woman hoped for home birth then rushed to hospital.
Not sure about the rest.
On my ward afterwards, all five of us on there (not all my class) had had emergency CSs.

I didn't do NCT, my frist birth, 39 weeks, natural, no intervention, 3 hrs 43 mins from start to finsh in hospital, out the next day!

Message withdrawn

Can't remember as I was the first to deliver in my nct classes, waste of money lol as I had her afte just 2 classes. I gave birth without assistane though and was only pushing for 19 mins the first time.