Readmission following caesarean section: Outcomes for women in an Irish maternity hospital

Background: Women who give birth by caesarean section are more likely to require readmission to hospital following birth compared to women who give birth vaginally. Aims: To examine the reasons, management and outcomes for women readmitted to hospital following birth by caesarean section (CS). Methods: A retrospective audit of maternity records was undertaken. Findings: The total number of births for the period of data extraction was 8580, of which 2470 (28.79%) women gave birth by CS. A total of 107 women (4.33% of those who gave birth by CS) were readmitted to hospital between 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015, of which 46 women (1.86%) were readmitted following elective CS and 61 (2.47%) following emergency CS. The average length of hospital stay was 2.64 and 4.61 nights, respectively, and the average timeline for readmission was 14.6 days following elective CS and 15.7 following emergency CS. The most common reason for readmission was wound infection, with the majority of women requiring analgesics (n=29...