1 in 3 women fail to get pregnant after caesarean

[coveredinsnot]

Is this really true? If so, it's crazy that this isn't more widely known, and it's also incredibly depressing. infertility.suite101.com/article.cfm/one_in_three_women_infertile_after_caesarean#ixzz0ZU5SVe SX

link here sorry

That looks like a small study - 500 women. Of them I think it's about 21 who had secondary infertility that wasn't overcome - so only about 4% of women giving birth overall - and you don't know how many of the vaginal birth women also had secondary infertility. What we also don't know is the reason for the c-sections - emergency/elective? That's going to make a difference to future fertility I susupect.

Yes a small study shouldn't be reported in such a definitive way, you're right.

But why would emergency or elective caesareans make a difference to future fertility, and in what way?

I don't know exactly - but I would think that an emergency c-section carried out for a medical reason in the mother might be followed by diminished fertility because of that medical reason. It's not the c-section as such - it's the complications that go with it iyswim. Whereas a c-section that's carried out because of length of labour or position of baby - emergency or elective - well it would be interesting to know if fertility in those women remained higher than in the group who were unwell.

scar tissue on uterus? being sewn up in a way which more closely resembles quilting than reconstruction may have some contribution....

another study which says it is all our fault for being cowardly humrep.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/18/10/1983

i have never understood why some sort of maternal factor is blamed for causing cs, when usually it is just the hospital timetable.

It's not one in three women who have a caesarian, it's one in three of those who don't have another child. so more like less than one in six.

Ah, monniemae, thanks for explaining the stats. I'm no good at stuff like that! Thanks fishie for the link to the other article as well, all interesting stuff and I'm starting to feel a little better now that I realise the research is (as ever) not as clear cut as it's initially portrayed as being.
Thanks ladies!

There have also been a couple of studies which found 25% of women have adhesions after one caesarean. Around 46% have them after two.

Caesareans are lifesavers on occasion, but the caesarean rate is out of control.