C-section

2023: Doctors start using electrical stimulation to relieve pain after C-section

On October 10, 2023, American researchers led by Jennifer Grasch, a researcher at the Ohio University Medical Center in Columbus, reported the successful use of a new non-invasive technology to relieve pain after caesarean section. We are talking about percutaneous electrical stimulation of nerves.

It is noted that percutaneous electrical stimulation systems have proven to be effective in suppressing pain after various surgical procedures, but such solutions were not used in caesarean sections. Meanwhile, the method could potentially lead to a dose reduction or a complete withdrawal from opioid group drugs.

US researchers report successful use of percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation to relieve pain after caesarean section

The study was conducted from April 18, 2022 to January 31, 2023 in the maternity ward of one of the academic medical centers in Ohio. The project involved 134 women who underwent C-sections during childbirth. Half of them received therapy based on high-frequency (20,000 Hz) electrical stimulation, while others were connected to a device that did not generate electrical pulses.

Patients in both groups received planned analgesics. It turned out that the use of high-frequency electrical stimulation devices allowed to reduce opioid intake in the hospital by about 47%. Moreover, thanks to the use of the new technology, some women were able to completely refuse to take painkillers after the operation. At the same time, the researchers did not record significant side effects from the use of therapy based on electrical stimulation: this indicates the safety of the proposed method. Experts believe that the technology will ease the condition of women after a difficult birth and reduce the likelihood of developing drug addiction as a result of the use of opioid painkillers.^[1]

2020: Caesarean section makes it difficult to conceive the next child

In mid-July 2020, the Pennsylvania State College of Medicine released the results of its study, according to which caesarean section in the first pregnancy reduces the likelihood of conception of the second child. The team of researchers bases their findings on three years of observations of more than 2,000 women.

Earlier studies had found that C-sections were less likely to be accompanied by the birth of the next babies, but scientists did not know whether this was due to the mother's choice or a lower chance of conceiving. This time, the researchers followed the women until the birth of their first child and conducted a survey every six months up to three years after the first birth. During each interview, they asked women to report how often they had unprotected sex in the previous six months.

The researchers analyzed data from 2,021 women aged 18 to 35. About 600 of those women gave birth to their first child using caesarean sections, and it turned out those women were older, overweight and short and more likely to seek fertility testing or treatment.

Caesarean section interferes with the conception of the next child

Approximately 69% of women who gave birth by caesarean section became pregnant after unprotected intercourse. In the group of women with natural childbirth, this figure was 78%. Women in the first group were also less likely to have a live baby. This correlation persisted even after the researchers accounted for maternal age, pre-pregnancy body mass index, time to conception of the first child, pregnancy weight gain, prior induced abortions, the presence of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hospitalization during pregnancy, and other factors.

Sex control was a key element of the study and allowed scientists to rule out factors such as trauma or prolonged pain after a caesarean section. Although the study did not assess the reasons for the decline in the frequency of conception, the scientists suspect that physiological changes, such as scarring in the pelvic cavity or fallopian tubes, may be at the heart of this phenomenon.^[2]

2019: Ex-head of maternity hospital who refused to have C-section arrested

On December 18, 2019, the Presnensky District Court of Moscow released Marina Sarmosyan under house arrest, changing her preventive measure. Previously, the former head of the maternity hospital GKB named after S.I. Spasokukotsky DZM (formerly maternity hospital No. 27) was in jail on charges of negligence and the provision of services that do not meet safety requirements. Read more here.

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