Giving birth after a previous caesarean section

“Choosing together with a decision aid”

If you had a caesarean section in your previous pregnancy, we referred you to this page (giving birth after a previous caesarean section). Here you will find a short introduction to the decision aid. You can also choose to download the entire document. We advise you to read the document together with your partner, so that we can assess together whether it is necessary to make a timely appointment with the gynecologist during your current pregnancy.

This decision aid is targeted at women who are pregnant and who have had a caesarean section in a previous pregnancy.

In the current pregnancy, a choice will have to be made together with your partner and the gynecologist about the method of delivery: pursuing a vaginal delivery or a planned caesarean section.

The aim is to make a provisional choice in a timely fashion together with the gynecologist during pregnancy. Of course, changes can occur later in the pregnancy that may change this choice. This means that the method of delivery, if necessary, will be discussed with you again after 36 weeks of pregnancy.

On the basis of a step-by-step plan, you discuss some points with the gynecologist that are important when making a choice between a vaginal delivery and a planned caesarean section.

The discussion items are:

• your preferences prior to the meeting
• your experience of the previous delivery
• advantages, disadvantages and possible complications of a planned caesarean section and a vaginal delivery
• your considerations when weighing both options
• preferences and/or conditions under which you would like to opt for a vaginal delivery
• a provisional choice
• how to proceed?

The entire document is also available.