Rotunda Hospital Dublin clinical report 1st January 1992 to 31st December 1992

Abstract

1992 the Rotunda Hospital delivered 6294 mothers, 5628 mothers having babies weighing more than 500g. In total (including multiple births) 5692 babies weighing 500g or more were born. There were 58 perinatal deaths (31 stillborn and 27 dying in the first week of life) with an uncorrected perinatal mortality rare at 10.2. This was very much in line with previous years and when corrected for lethal congenital anomaly at 6.3, this is the same as for 1991. Only 13 of 31 stillborn infants and 4 of 27 first week neonatal deaths were normally formed infants weighing more than 1OOOg. Six hundred and sixty six mothers lost their pregnancies before their babies had grown to 500 grams weight. Although not included in our perinatal mortality statistics, these mothers most rightly deserve and hopefully receive much comfort, counselling and attention. In 1992 the epidural analgesic rate (54%) and caesarean section rate (13.7%) were similar to the previous year. Thirty-five per cent (1987) of our mothers were having their first babies and of these 311 (15.6%) were delivered by caesarean section. Of these primiparous mothers, 11 80 (60%) required episiotomies and 1536 (77%) had regional analgesia.