C-Section for Breeched Baby

My wife is about to have her 2nd baby. It is about a month from due-date.
The baby is apparently breeched, and doctor is recommending C-section. My
wife is unsure.

Questions are (1) is C-section really necessary for this (2) can mother
absolutely refuse C-section? You'd think #2 would be a for sure yes, as it
is her body and her choice (you'd think), but I'm skeptical.

Should she see another doctor for a 2nd opinion?

Thanks.

noone wrote:
My wife is about to have her 2nd baby. It is about a month from due-date.
The baby is apparently breeched, and doctor is recommending C-section. My
wife is unsure.

Questions are (1) is C-section really necessary for this

It depends on the type of breech and other situational
factors.

(2) can mother absolutely refuse C-section?

Sure, but you'd need to know a lot more about the
situation to know whether that would be wise.

You'd think #2 would be a for sure yes, as it
is her body and her choice (you'd think), but I'm skeptical.

Should she see another doctor for a 2nd opinion?

Yes. Way before I'd agree to a c-section, I'd
want to know what kind of breech and whether an external
cephalic version (turning the baby) was a possibility.
ECV is a bit of an art, so if you give that a try, you
want someone very experienced and successful to do it--
and that person may not be your regular caregiver. Many
caregivers have little experience with ECV, and consequently
have little skill or success. Why bother trying with
someone who doesn't have a good success rate? There are
situations in which it's not appropriate to try an ECV,
but don't take that opinion from someone who's inexperienced
with or biased against them. Find someone who's good
at them, and then you'll have more confidence if he or
she says your wife is not a good candidate for an ECV.

There are a few doctors out there who are skilled
at vaginal breech birth. If the baby doesn't turn on his
or her own, and if an ECV isn't possible or doesn't work,
and if the situation is favorable for a vaginal breech
birth, and your wife really wants a vaginal birth, then
it would behoove you to find someone skilled at vaginal
breech birth to attend. Many doctors have little or no
experience with vaginal breech births, and I have to
imagine that that ups the risk significantly compared
to being attended by a caregiver who *is* experienced
with vaginal breech birth.

Best wishes,
Ericka

In the medium-sized city where I live, there is only one doctor who
will do vaginal breech deliveries. If your doctor doesn't have
experience doing them, you wouldn't be wise to attempt it. You need
to ask around to see if there is an experienced practitioner in your
area. Getting the baby to turn (try chiropractic, acupuncture, or
some other methods--there have been posts on this here before) is
probably the safer way to go.

Leslie

On Apr 16, 7:21 pm, "noone" wrote:
My wife is about to have her 2nd baby. It is about a month from due-date.
The baby is apparently breeched, and doctor is recommending C-section. My
wife is unsure.

Questions are (1) is C-section really necessary for this (2) can mother
absolutely refuse C-section? You'd think #2 would be a for sure yes, as it
is her body and her choice (you'd think), but I'm skeptical.

Should she see another doctor for a 2nd opinion?

Thanks.

I went through the same thing a year ago. I was very opposed to c-
section, so I was devastated.
However, it all seems silly now a year after, though at the time I was
incredibly upset. If it helps, the
c-section will all be forgotten soon after.

Have they tried to an ECV to turn the baby around. Mine didnt work and
their success rates
are under 50% depending on the doctor that does it. They are pretty
uncomfortable, though. But since this is not
the first baby, and if the baby is not too large,
then shes got a better possibility of success. If that doesnt work
theres a lot of people that report
success with chiropractor treatment on getting the baby turned.

Since your wife has had a previous baby, she should be a better
candidate for vaginal birth than I was.
I would meet with some mid-wifes in your area and ask if they do
vaginal breech births. Midwives are more open
to this, and there was one in my area. I think this is safer for a
second-time mother than a first-timer like me,
and they should be able to evaluate whether shes a good candidate.
Theres many countries that still do vaginal births
on breech babies.

Good Luck, hope you have better luck than me.

On Apr 16, 9:21 pm, "noone" wrote:
My wife is about to have her 2nd baby. It is about a month from due-date.
The baby is apparently breeched, and doctor is recommending C-section. My
wife is unsure.

Questions are (1) is C-section really necessary for this (2) can mother
absolutely refuse C-section? You'd think #2 would be a for sure yes, as it
is her body and her choice (you'd think), but I'm skeptical.

Should she see another doctor for a 2nd opinion?

Thanks.

I think everyone else has already covered it -- there are different
kinds of breech positions so you need to know exactly what position
your baby is in. It could very well be necessary. Trying to turn the
baby is your best bet, I think it's best to attempt this by 36 weeks
or so, so you should inquire soon if you are interested. I agree with
the other posters that it would be unwise to refuse a c-section if
your caregiver is inexperienced with breech births. A second opinion
is a great idea, if you find someone who is very experienced with
breech deliveries and thinks your wife is a good candidate to attempt
a breech birth then you will be all set.

Good luck
Elle

HLady wrote:

Have they tried to an ECV to turn the baby around. Mine didnt work and
their success rates
are under 50% depending on the doctor that does it.

I don't think this is accurate. Several studies
have reported a higher success rate for ECV with experienced
practitioners. The one I used had about a 70 percent
success rate.

They are pretty uncomfortable, though.

This also varies considerably. Mine was easily
tolerable. This also has a lot to do with the skill
of the care provider, as well as with the details of
the particular situation. It is true that some ECVs
are painful. It is also possible to do them with
epidural anesthesia.

Best wishes,
Ericka

Elle wrote:

I think everyone else has already covered it -- there are different
kinds of breech positions so you need to know exactly what position
your baby is in. It could very well be necessary. Trying to turn the
baby is your best bet, I think it's best to attempt this by 36 weeks
or so, so you should inquire soon if you are interested.

I believe the optimal window is the 37th week, based
on what I read at the time mine was done.

Best wishes,
Ericka

On Tue, 17 Apr 2007 12:40:54 -0400, Ericka Kammerer
wrote:

I believe the optimal window is the 37th week, based
on what I read at the time mine was done.

This is what we were told, as well. PROM and the onset of labor at
the tail end of week 36 meant we were unable to talk to the doctor who
would perform mine.

Nan

"Ericka Kammerer" wrote in message
...
HLady wrote:

Have they tried to an ECV to turn the baby around. Mine didnt work and
their success rates
are under 50% depending on the doctor that does it.

I don't think this is accurate. Several studies
have reported a higher success rate for ECV with experienced
practitioners. The one I used had about a 70 percent
success rate.

The rate round here is about 70-80%, I was told. He is regarded as being
very experienced though.
They are pretty uncomfortable, though.

This also varies considerably. Mine was easily
tolerable. This also has a lot to do with the skill
of the care provider, as well as with the details of
the particular situation. It is true that some ECVs
are painful. It is also possible to do them with
epidural anesthesia.
Mum had me turned twice (they initially turned at 36 weeks and I turned
back) and said it wasn't painful at all. Of course that is looking back 30
years...
Debbie

Leslie wrote:
Getting the baby to turn (try chiropractic, acupuncture, or
some other methods--there have been posts on this here before) is
probably the safer way to go.


According to my yoga teacher, you can increase the chances of the baby
turning on its own, if you give it some space, away from the pelvis:
Go on all fours with your elbows on the floor, rest your head on your
lower arms. Rest like this (with your pelvis higher than your shoulders)
every two hours for 10 minutes.
I don't think the chances of this working are incredibly high, but it
certainly won't hurt.

Karen