South African medical journal = Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir geneeskunde
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In the latest (2011-2013) Saving Mothers report, the National Committee for Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths in South Africa (SA) (NCCEMD) highlights the large number of maternal deaths associated with caesarean section (CS). The risk of a woman dying as a result of CS during the past triennium was almost three times that for vaginal delivery. Of all the mothers who died during or after a CS, 3.4% died during the procedure and 14.5% from haemorrhage afterwards. Including all cases of death from obstetric haemorrhage where a CS was done, there were 5.5 deaths from haemorrhage for every 10,000 CSs performed. ⋯ This is an area of concern, and a concentrated effort should be done to make CS in SA safer. Several recommendations are