Tag: obstetrics

Lotus Birth To Blame for Death of Australian Newborn

Lotus Birth, an "ethically inadmissible" practice where a newborn is left attached to the placenta for several days, is risky, benefit free, and is likely to blame for the death of an Australian infant in 2017.

/ June 26, 2020

Lotus Birth: No Benefit, Plenty of Risk

The practice of refusing to cut the umbilical cord after delivery of a newborn has no benefit and risks serious infection. A recent case series illustrates the risks of so-called Lotus birth.

/ December 28, 2018

Vaginal Birth After C-Section: How Safe Is It?

Doctors used to insist “once a C-section, always a C-section.” Today it is standard practice to allow vaginal births after C-section (VBAC) for appropriately selected patients. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has issued a Practice Bulletin to guide obstetricians in determining which patients are appropriate candidates for VBAC. We frequently hear criticisms of practice guidelines like these. The doctors...

/ January 12, 2016

Home birth tragedies lead to changes in Oregon

Oregon Health Plan (OHP), the state’s Medicaid insurer, will no longer cover planned home and birth center births for women whose pregnancies aren’t classified as low risk, based on newly-established criteria. The Health Evidence Review Commission (HERC), a group of experts designated by the state, came up with criteria that will exclude women with a substantial list of conditions, such as high...

/ December 10, 2015

Are Prenatal Ultrasounds Dangerous?

Several questionable sources are spreading alarms about the possible dangers of prenatal ultrasound exams (sonograms). An example is Christine Anderson’s article on the ExpertClick website. In the heading, it says she “Never Liked Ultrasound Technology.” [She] has never been sold on the safety using Ultrasounds for checking on the fetuses of pregnant women, and for the last decade her fears have been confirmed...

/ August 30, 2011

Birth Day

So many of the posts on this blog are critical and deal with examples of poor science or other problems. I’d like to offer a breath of fresh air in the form of a book by Mark Sloan, MD: Birth Day: A Pediatrician Explores the Science, the History, and the Wonder of Childbirth. It is a very positive book. Sloan has attended...

/ July 14, 2009

The Business of Being Born

One of our readers asked for a critique of the movie “The Business of Being Born.” I guess my sex and specialty make me the best qualified to comment. I delivered over 200 babies as a family physician. I had two babies of my own (at age 37 and 39), one with intervention (forceps) and one 9-pounder who almost “fell” out before...

/ March 25, 2008