Table 2.
Baseline characteristics of study cohorts
| Characteristics | Assisted Vaginal Delivery (n = 211) | Second-stage Caesarean Delivery (n = 348) | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mothers’ age | |||
| − < 20 years | 12 (5.7%) | 21 (6.0%) | 0.916 |
| − 20–34 years | 185 (87.7%) | 301 (86.5%) | |
| − ≥ 35 years | 14 (6.6%) | 26 (7.5%) | |
| Marital Status | |||
| − Single | 2 (0.9%) | 3 (0.9%) | 1.000 |
| − Married | 209 (99.1%) | 345 (99.1%) | |
| Educational qualification | |||
| − Primary education & below | 52 (24.7%) | 95 (27.3%) | 0.552 |
| − Secondary education & above | 159 (75.3%) | 253 (72.7%) | |
| Religion | |||
| − Christian | 208 (98.6%) | 345 (99.1%) | 0.677 |
| − Muslim, ATR & others | 3 (1.4%) | 3 (0.9%) | |
| Prenatal care received | |||
| − ≥ 4 ANC visits | 143 (67.8%) | 231 (66.4%) | 0.942 |
| − 1–3 ANC visits | 42 (19.9%) | 73 (21.0%) | |
| − 0 ANC visit | 26 (12.3%) | 44 (12.6%) | |
| Parity | |||
| − Nulliparous | 105 (49.8%) | 164 (47.1%) | 0.600 |
| − Parous | 106 (50.2%) | 184 (52.9%) | |
| Gestational age at birth | |||
| − 370–396 weeks | 134 (63.5%) | 207 (59.5%) | 0.372 |
| − ≥ 40 weeks | 77 (36.5%) | 141 (40.5%) | |
| Sex of newborn | |||
| − Female | 107 (50.7%) | 169 (48.6%) | 0.663 |
| − Male | 104 (49.3%) | 179 (51.4%) | |
| Birth weight | |||
| − < 2500 g | 13 (6.3%) | 14 (4.3%) | 0.561 |
| − 2500 to 4000 g | 178 (85.5%) | 285 (86.6%) | |
| − ≥ 4000 g | 17 (8.2%) | 30 (9.1%) | |
| Indications for interventiona | |||
| − Delayed second stage | 178 (84.4%) | 239 (68.7%) | < 0.001 |
| − Maternal exhaustion / fatigue | 49 (23.2%) | 63 (18.1%) | 0.157 |
| − Foetal distress | 6 (2.8%) | 71 (20.4%) | < 0.001 |
| − Other indications | 0 (0.0%) | 8 (2.3%) | 0.027 |
| Imminent Delivery complications | |||
| − Impending Uterine rupture | 3 (1.4%) | 9 (2.6%) | 0.393 |
| − Placenta abruption | 1 (0.5%) | 1 (0.3%) | 1.000 |
| − Cord prolapse | 1 (0.5%) | 7 (2.0%) | 0.166 |
Abbreviations: ATR African traditional religion, ANC Antenatal Care consultations
a More than one indication could apply