If a pregnant student’s due date is a little too close to finals than she is comfortable with, then she can elect to schedule a cesarean section. This is what the women in Hollywood do. The ones that are too posh to push (Weaver). The ones that don’t want to go through labor. Is this ethical?
A cesarean section, or C-section, is a surgical procedure used to deliver a baby through a woman’s abdomen wall and uterus by way of incision. Sometimes C-sections are performed for emergency medical conditions such as the baby not getting enough oxygen or the mother hemorrhaging. These conditions can occur during pregnancy or during labor. Non-urgent conditions, such as a baby being in the breech position, feet down, late in pregnancy or the mother having a medical condition that would result in a dangerous vaginal delivery, can cause doctors to plan for and schedule a cesarean section. And sometimes a woman chooses to have a C-section that is not medically necessary.
C-sections account for 33% of births in the United States. This …show more content…
Three times more women who have a cesarean section suffer severe maternal morbidities than women who deliver vaginally (Caughey et al). These can include cardiac arrest, hemorrhage requiring hysterectomy or transfusion, major infection and uterine rupture. “In fact, a woman is four times more likely to die as a result of a Caesarean than from a vaginal birth” (Jones).
Next, there are the long-term risks to the mother. A woman who has a C-section has a higher risk for future fertility issues and ectopic pregnancies. Most doctors automatically recommend a C-section for pregnancies following a C-section delivery, and each cesarean section procedure increases risk for serious complications in future pregnancies. The risk for a hysterectomy also goes up significantly with each C-section ("What You Need to Know About Cesarean Section: An Interview with Dr. Carol Sakala of Childbirth