Introduction: An increasing number of women give birth by caesarean section (CS) in Denmark, some without any medical reasons for this procedure. This is called maternal request sectio (MRS). To analyse the development of MRS over a five-year period and investigate how parity, former birth complications, the weight of the child and the mother's living area and age are related to MRS.
Material and methods: Retrospective registry analysis of births during the period 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2006. MRS was identified by the surgical code KZYM00.
Results: 5,165 MRSs were recorded during the study period. Among nulliparous (P0) women there was an increase in MRS from 3.2% of all elective CS in 2002 to 19.4% in 2006. The largest share, 24.1%, was found in the age group 35+. Among multiparous (P1+) women there was an increase from 5.5% to 31.2%, and the largest share, 35.8%, was in the age group 15-24. MRS was most frequent in the Capital Region. Women who had experienced CS, third degree perineal tear, or perinatal death in their first delivery, had a 3.8, 1.3 and 2.0 times increased risk of MRS in their next delivery. The weight of the child had no influence on MRS.
Conclusion: MRS has increased over the past five years, and now amounts to 1.3% of all births for P0 women and 3.6% for P1+ women. Previous birth complications and the age and living area of the mother are associated with MRS. Better knowledge of the reasons why some women choose MRS would provide professionals with better tools to support these women.