Mackenzie Zuiderveen
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Research Mentor(s): Melissa Zochowski, Research Program Manager
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Psychiatry and Learning Health Sciences, Michigan Medicine
Presentation Date: Thursday, April 22, 2021
Session: Session 6 (4pm-4:50pm)
Breakout Room: Room 14
Presenter: 4
Abstract
The United States currently faces the issue of high rates of Cesarean-sections performed in hospitals across the nation. Among all developed countries, the U.S. maintains one of the highest C-section rates at 31% of births completed by Cesarean. These C-sections have been linked to increased marital and neonatal complications, including increased morbidity, and they are also very costly toward patients. Studies suggest that many of these C-sections are classified under the category Nulliparous Term Singleton Vertex (NTSV), which are done on low-risk women and hence are likely avoidable procedures. This study aims to understand differences between NTSV C-section rates across the United States. The type of data reviewed includes each state’s C-section rate, NTSV C-section rate, number of deliveries/year, and whether the state has C-section reduction programs. It has been found that California, Michigan, New Jersey, and Florida, despite all being states with C-section reduction programs, are still experiencing high rates of NTSV C-sections. It has also been determined that the accessibility of information regarding C-sections varies greatly among different states. We plan to move forward in this study to find other nonclinical factors that may be confounding C-section rates in each state, in hopes of revealing improvements that could be made toward reducing the regularity of NTSV C-section rates in the United States.
Authors: Mackenzie Zuiderveen, Melissa Zochowski
Research Method: Library/Archival/Internet Research
