A review of caesarean sections associated with perinatal mortality at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria.

Abstract

Objectives: To determine the perinatalmortality rate among women who delivered through caesarean section in a tertiary health institution in Nigeria and evaluate how various social and obstetric factors influence the perinatal deaths. Methods: Areviewof the clinical records of patients who had caesarean section associated with perinatal death over a 5-year period in the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital was performed. Sociodemographic and obstetrics datawere collected fromthe record of the patients and their infants for analysis. Results: During the period under review, therewere 122 perinatal deaths associatedwith 923 caesarean sections giving perinatal mortality rate of 132 per 1000 births. Majority (86.1%) of the patients were unbooked and 77.9% had no or low level of education. Nulliparae and grandmultiparae accounted for 88 (72.1%) of the perinatal deaths.Obstructed labourwas the indication for caesarean sections in 64.8% of the cases.The stillbirth and early neonatalmortality rates were 80 and 52 per 1000 respectively. Seventy eight per cent of the stillbirths. Conclusion: Perinatal mortality rate among patients who were delivered through caesarean section is still high in our center and the women were mostly unbooked, in the extremes of parity, and had no or low level of education. Preventive measures should aim at adequate female education and effective and efficient antenatal coverage.

Keywords: Caesarean section, perinatalmortality.