DIFFERENCES AMONG OBSTETRICIANS IN CESAREAN-SECTION RATES

This retrospective study examined the Caesarean section rates of 15 ob stetricians at 1 hospital delivering 5,559 nulliparas with a single ce phalic baby of birth-weight greater than or equal to 2,500 g. There wa s a wide variation in obstetricians' Caesarean rates, whether consider ing all their deliveries (5.5% to 20.1%), deliveries of their own pati ents (8.9% to 28.2%), or deliveries of their colleagues' patients (4.5 % to 17.9%). There was no relation between Caesarean rates and perinat al outcome. The different Caesarean section rates among the obstetrici ans could not be explained by institutional factors, physician conveni ence, patient differences, or self-serving economic incentives.