Patients' satisfaction with and attitudes toward vaginal delivery.
OBJECTIVE
To determine patient satisfaction with delivery mode and whether information on urinary incontinence would modify their decision.


METHODS
Postpartum women completed an anonymous questionnaire regarding their delivery, complications, types of information received during pregnancy, and delivery and satisfaction with their mode of delivery. Various risk scenarios for urinary incontinence ranging from 10-50% were presented.


RESULTS
One hundred ninety-two ethnically and economically diverse patients responded: 86.4% reported receiving sufficient information on the risks of delivery, and 61.5% thought that cesarean section would not help prevent urinary/fecal incontinence. Irrespective of the magnitude of risk, few patients (5.7-21.9%) chose cesarean section to prevent urinary incontinence.


CONCLUSIONS
Patients were happy with their delivery mode. Most thought that they obtained sufficient information on the various types of delivery available. They would not have chosen a cesarean section over a vaginal delivery even if the risks of urinary incontinence were much higher than currently reported.
McLennan
Mary T
MT
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63117, USA. mclennam@slucare1.sluh.edu
Alten
Beverly
B
Melick
Clifford
C
Hoehn
Melanie
M
Young
Jacqueline
J
D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002585:Cesarean Section / Q000523:psychology; D002755:Choice Behavior; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011247:Pregnancy