Contact between mother, child and partner and attitudes towards breastfeeding in relation to mode of delivery

ObjectiveTo investigate contact between mothers and their newborn child and study if there are differences between those who requested an elective caesarean section compared to women who had a vaginal birth and those who underwent an elective caesarean section due to obstetrical indication. The psychometric properties of a scale that measure the contact between mother and child were also investigated.DesignA prospective cohort study.SettingDanderyd Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.Sample510 primiparas from three groups: women undergoing caesarean section on maternal request (n = 96), women undergoing caesarean section on obstetrical indication (n = 116) and women planning a vaginal delivery (n = 198). The later were further divided into subgroups; women who underwent assisted vaginal delivery (n = 35) and women who had an emergency caesarean section (n = 65).MethodsThe instrument used was the Alliance Scale.Main outcome measureThe contact between mother and child in relation to mode of delivery.ResultsThe contact with the child was rated as positive on all occasions: there were no significant differences between the groups. The relation to the partner was rated as positive at all occasions. Mothers with a vaginal delivery experienced breastfeeding less stressful than the mothers with a caesarean delivery. Three and nine months after delivery the mothers with a caesarean delivery on request reported more breastfeeding problems than mothers in the other groups. Mothers with a vaginal delivery rated less sadness at every occasion.ConclusionMode of delivery does not seem to affect how mothers experience their contact towards the newborn child.