Maternity Statistics: Method of Delivery, 2002-2012

Statistics on Maternity Statistics, Wales: method of delivery include data for Wales for the year ended 31 March 2012. The latest release updates the statistics previously released on 31 January 2012.

35,600 live births were registered in Wales in 2011 (data provided by the Office for National Statistics). Fewer than 4 per cent of births took place at home or elsewhere; most babies (96%) were born in a hospital setting (ONS 2010). This Release provides data on the method of delivery for hospital deliveries only.

Birth registration data is made available routinely by the Office for National Statistics and is included in the Welsh Government’s publications and website.

Key Results:

• Around 6 in 10 deliveries are unassisted, a proportion which has fallen slightly since the early 2000s.
• The proportion of hospital deliveries by caesarean section rose from 24 per cent in 2002-03 to 26 per cent in 2011-12.  An estimate of the national caesarean rate would include home and other births, making the Wales rate 25 per cent instead of 26 per cent (ONS 2010).
• There has been a trend over the past ten years towards shorter hospital stays for all types of delivery.

In 2011-12, of all hospital deliveries:

• The percentage of older mothers (aged 45 years and over) having caesareans has increased over the past ten years, from 46 per cent in 2002-03 to 54 per cent.
• 36 per cent of mothers who had caesareans stayed in hospital 4 or more days, compared to 71 per cent ten years ago. However, only 10 per cent of mothers who had unassisted births stayed in hospital 4 or more days, compared to 14 per cent ten years ago.
• 23 per cent of all deliveries in Wales were induced, compared to 19 per cent in 2004-05 (earliest available data).
• The principal recorded complication of labour and delivery was perineal laceration, recorded in 37 per cent of deliveries.

Further information

StatsWales website.

Contact

Tel: 029 2082 5064
E-mail: stats.healthinfo@wales.gsi.gov.uk

Next update

November 2013 (provisional - to be confirmed on the 'Due Out Soon' page)