SaralnamaMore than half of UK births now involve medical intervention, an audit finds. In 2023, 50.6% of 592,594 births in Britain used caesarean sections or instruments like forceps. Caesarean births rose from 25% in 2015-16 to 38.9% in 2023. Experts link this to more complex pregnancies due to older or obese women having babies. Induced births increased from 29.3% to 33.9%. However, forceps or ventouse cup use fell from 12.3% to 11.1%. The National Maternity and Perinatal Audit revealed these trends. Some experts worry about high intervention rates, while others say it's not necessarily concerning. The audit also noted declining fertility rates in the UK, with England and Wales at 1.44 children per woman and Scotland at 1.3. (Updated 11 Sep 2025, 06:42 IST; source: link)
Key Points
- More than half of UK births now involve medical intervention, an audit finds
- In 2023, 50.6% of 592,594 births in Britain used caesarean sections or instruments like forceps
- Caesarean births rose from 25% in 2015-16 to 38.9% in 2023