Vaginal delivery versus elective cesarean section and the impact on children’s skill development

Abstract

Background: Caesarean section is associated with dif-ferent development outcomes in children. In this way, the type of delivery can influence the health of the child. Objectives: To investigate the existence of differences in skill development up to the age of 2 between children who were born by vaginal delivery and those born by elective cesarean section. Methodology: Observational and cross-sectional study with a sample composed of 400 dyads, using a quantitative methodology based on a multivariate analysis with Generalized Linear Models in IBM SPSS Statis-tics, version 18.0. Results: Children born by cesarean delivery scored lower in the locomotor skill domain, but still within the normal parameters for their age. They also scored lower in the manipulative, visual, speech and language, and self-care skill domains than those born by vaginal deliv-ery. No differences were found between groups in the cognitive, hearing and language, and interactive-social skills. Conclusion: Significant differences were found in the development of some skills at 2 years of age between children born by elective cesarean section and those born by normal delivery.