MANAGEMENT OF BREECH PRESENTATION - THE 1993 ISRAELI CENSUS

Objectives: To investigate current attitudes to management of labor and delivery in pregnancies complicated by breech presentation. Study Design: A questionnaire was sent to the directors of 23 units of maternal-fetal medicine, all members of the Israel Society of Perinatal Obstetricians. The survey included 69 072 deliveries in the year 1993. Current world literature on the topics included in the survey was also reviewed. Results: The overall response rate was 83% (19/23). The overall breech presentation rate was 3.4%, and overall caesarean section rate was 11.2%. In breech presentation, the caesarean section rate was 63.6%. Conclusions: A rational approach allows vaginal breech delivery to be practiced in almost half of carefully selected cases. These results again emphasize the longstanding need for prospective randomized studies regarding the different aspects associated with the delivery of the fetus in breech presentation.