Babies born through a planned caesarean section are up to four times more likely to suffer from breathing problems in the first days of life, according to a study today.

The research, published online by the British Medical Journal, shows that the earlier the caesarean is carried out, the higher the risk. Many caesareans are timetabled to take place after 37 or 38 weeks of pregnancy so that the woman does not go into spontaneous labour at 39 or 40 weeks.

"More and more women request a caesarean without any obvious reason," said lead author Dr Anne Hansen, from the perinatal epidemiology research unit at Aarhus University hospital in Denmark, where the research was carried out.

"This study tells them that there is a risk. You should know that there is a risk that your child will be in an incubator for a few days and you should put your foot down and say I don't want this at 37 weeks - I want to wait until 39 weeks," she said.

Doctors believe that surges of hormones as labour begins may kickstart the baby's lungs. Studies have shown that when labour is not initiated, the foetus does not experience an increase in catecholamine levels, a group of hormones such as adrenaline which are released by the adrenal glands at times of stress.


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http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2007/dec/12/health