Caesareans 'add to breathing risk'

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The finding adds to the body of evidence about the risks of Caesareans, which are on the rise in the UK.

Almost a quarter of births are now estimated to be Caesarean sections - far above the 10% to 15% rate recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Experts have been calling for measures to reduce the numbers of women undergoing the operation, especially when they could deliver normally.

The latest study, published online in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), found that babies delivered through pre-planned Caesarean were far more likely to suffer breathing difficulties compared with those born naturally or by emergency Caesarean.

The earlier in the pregnancy the baby was delivered, the more risk of problems.

The study backs up previous research which has linked elective Caesareans with an increased risk of respiratory difficulties in new-borns.

Although the exact reasons are unknown, one could be that the hormonal and physiological changes associated with labour are necessary for the lungs to mature, the researchers said.

How well developed the baby is at the time of the operation may also be a factor.

Experts from Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark carried out a large-scale study involving 34,458 individual babies born between 37 and 41 weeks, and delivered between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2006.