 What risk, according to the author, is increased by practitioners who are wary of performing C-sections?
One audit has suggested that roughly 8,000 babies get stuck and have to be delivered by caesarean at a stage when their mothers are fully dilated. "There are strong opinions about why it happens and what to do, but very little research evidence," says Tydeman, adding that many of these opinions are contradictory. In a protracted birth that's destined to end with a caesarean, the longer the labour is allowed to go on before the obstetrician decides to intervene, the greater the likelihood that the baby's head will become impacted. However, concern over the rising number of babies born by caesarean has made doctors more wary of doing them – one consequence of which is that medical staff may allow a difficult birth to continue for longer before they resort to surgery.
 They could increase the prevalence of impaction and, therefore, challenging births
 They could be sued for malpractice if the fetus does not survive childbirth  They could be sued for malpractice if the mother does not survive childbirth  They could increase the prevalence of impaction and, therefore, challenging births  They could accidentally make the incision in the wrong location, necessitating further costly surgeries