Table 2.
Caesarean section (CS) rate changes in regions/subregions from 1990 to 2018
| Region/subregion* | N | Coverage (%) | Rate changes (%, 95% CI) | |||
| 1990–2000 | 2000–2010 | 2010–2018 | 1990–2018 | |||
| Africa | 48 | 94.4 | 1.5 (0.7 to 2.4) | 3.7 (1.5 to 5.8) | 2.3 (1.3 to 3.3) | 7.5 (3.7 to 11.3) |
| Northern Africa | 5 | 97.4 | 6.2 (0.4 to 12.0) | 16.2 (-2.2 to 34.7) | 9.1 (3.3 to 14.8) | 31.5 (2.6 to 60.5) |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 43 | 93.9 | 0.8 (0.3 to 1.3) | 1.6 (1.1 to 2.2) | 1.2 (0.8 to 1.6) | 3.6 (2.4 to 4.8) |
| Asia | 42 | 98.4 | 6.2 (5.1 to 7.2) | 10.6 (8.1 to 13.1) | 7.7 (5.9 to 9.6) | 24.5 (19.5 to 29.4) |
| Central Asia | 5 | 100 | 1.8 (0.3 to 3.2) | 4.8 (2.3 to 7.2) | 3.4 (2.1 to 4.8) | 9.9 (5.2 to 14.6) |
| Eastern Asia | 5 | 100 | 8.7 (5.4 to 11.9) | 20.9 (11.3 to 30.4) | 15.3 (9.0 to 21.6) | 44.9 (28.8 to 60.9) |
| South-eastern Asia | 8 | 90.1 | 4.5 (1.7 to 7.3) | 6.7 (4.1 to 9.3) | 4.5 (1.5 to 7.6) | 15.8 (8.7 to 22.8) |
| Southern Asia | 8 | 100 | 4.8 (3.3 to 6.3) | 6.7 (4.2 to 9.3) | 4.9 (1.9 to 7.9) | 16.4 (10.9 to 21.9) |
| Western Asia | 16 | 99.0 | 12.1 (9.0 to 15.2) | 12.9 (7.2 to 18.6) | 9.7 (7.3 to 12.0) | 34.7 (24.0 to 45.3) |
| Europe | 38 | 98.5 | 7.1 (6.1 to 8.1) | 7.3 (5.9 to 8.7) | 4.5 (3.5 to 5.5) | 18.9 (16.1 to 21.8) |
| Eastern Europe | 10 | 100 | 7.9 (5.9 to 9.8) | 9.7 (6.8 to 12.7) | 6.3 (4.6 to 7.9) | 23.9 (17.7 to 30.0) |
| Northern Europe | 10 | 100 | 7.4 (5.4 to 9.5) | 3.8 (2.3 to 5.2) | 2.8 (1.0 to 4.5) | 14.0 (9.8 to 18.1) |
| Southern Europe | 11 | 92.4 | 9.3 (7.3 to 11.2) | 6.1 (3.3 to 8.9) | 5.4 (3.1 to 7.7) | 20.7 (16.2 to 25.3) |
| Western Europe | 7 | 100 | 4.3 (2.9 to 5.7) | 6.6 (3.3 to 9.9) | 2.1 (0.1 to 4.1) | 13.0 (7.1 to 18.9) |
| Americas | 25 | 96.0 | 5.6 (3.1 to 8.2) | 11.2 (9.5 to 12.8) | 3.5 (1.7 to 5.3) | 20.3 (15.1 to 25.5) |
| Latin America and the Caribbean | 23 | 94.3 | 7.8 (5.2 to 10.4) | 11.8 (9.9 to 13.8) | 5.2 (3.5 to 6.9) | 24.9 (19.5 to 30.3) |
| Northern America | 2 | 100 | 0.5 (−14.2 to 15.2) | 9.5 (−7.2 to 26.2) | −0.5 (−17.5 to 16.4) | 9.5 (−5.4 to 24.5) |
| Oceania† | 6 | 60.8 | 4.7 (1.3 to 8.2) | 6.6 (2.2 to 11) | 4.4 (2.2 to 6.7) | 15.8 (5.9 to 25.6) |
| Australia and New Zealand | 2 | 100 | 5.4 (−6.8 to 17.6) | 7.3 (−19.7 to 34.3) | 4.8 (−0.2 to 9.8) | 17.5 (−26.6 to 61.7) |
| World total | 159 | 96.9 | 5.0 (4.3 to 5.6) | 8.7 (7.5 to 9.9) | 5.7 (4.8 to 6.5) | 19.4 (16.9 to 21.9) |
| More developed countries | 45 | 99.1 | 4.8 (3.7 to 6.0) | 7.6 (6.5 to 8.7) | 2.6 (1.6 to 3.6) | 15.1 (12.7 to 17.4) |
| Less developed countries | 75 | 98.8 | 6.0 (5.0 to 7.0) | 10.2 (8.3 to 12.2) | 6.7 (5.4 to 8.0) | 22.9 (19.1 to 26.8) |
| Least developed countries | 39 | 89.5 | 1.4 (1.0 to 1.8) | 3.7 (2.2 to 5.3) | 3.4 (1.9 to 5.0) | 8.6 (5.3 to 11.8) |
*Countries categorised according to the UN geographical grouping.
†Changes of CS rates in Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia are not presented due to the low coverage in this subregion (10.5%).