Pregnancy Signs & Symptoms, Week by Week Pregnancy Guide

A new test has been developed in Sweden, which may help predict whether a woman will need a C section or not. This offers hope for all those women, who labor hard and long in the hope of a natural or vaginal delivery, and then be subjected to a C section in the end.

In many cases, women hold out for as long as possible in the hope that a vaginal delivery may be possible, so they undergo a long and grueling labor. However, in the end, an urgent or emergency Cesarean section is performed to protect the life and health of both mother and baby.

This is like having the world of both worlds; the pain of labor involved in a natural delivery as well as the post operative recovery pain and risks involved in a C section.

In the test, which is available in many European hospitals, the lactic acid level in the amniotic fluid is measured. When high levels of this acid are found to be present in the amniotic fluid, it decreases the chances of the mother delivering the baby vaginally.

It was seen that the muscles of the uterus, like other muscles, when they work hard, produce lactic acid. However, when the lactic acid reaches a certain level, it starts to inhibit contractions, and a C section may then become necessary.