Relationship Between Mode of Delivery and Rate of Birth Asphyxia in a Tertiary Care Hospital, Rawalpindi; A Case-Control Study

Abstract: Objective: To assess the relationship between mode of delivery and rate of birth asphyxia in a Tertiary care Hospital, Rawalpindi. Methodology: This prospective case control study was conducted in Holyfamily Hospital,Rawalpindi from August 2021 to December 2021.One hundred and seventy two newborns were enrolled after assessing the inclusion criteria and divided equally into cases(neonates with birth asphyxia) and controls(neonates without birth asphyxia).A structured performa was designed to take detailed history of mode of delivery and severity of birth asphyxia by using APGAR score. Data analysis was done using SPSS 24.00. Results: One hundred and seventy two neonates were included in the study. 110 were males (63.9%) and 62 were females (36%). Term infants were more affected with birth asphyxia rather than preterm infants(53.6%). Meconium stained liquor(61.9%) and non-booked cases(55.1%) were seen more in case group.Spontaneous vaginal delivery was the common mode among all in our study population(91%). Emergency caesarean sections have higher frequency of birth asphyxia as compared to elective caesarean sections (39.3%) but no statistically significant difference found in frequency of birth asphyxia between case and control groups with regards to mode of delivery (p value=0.620) but significant in terms of neonatal mortality(p value=0.000). Conclusion: Birth asphyxia is a common contributor to neonatal mortality and improving perinatal care can help in reducing neonatal morbidity and mortality in developing countries.