Although home delivery is still seen in Spain as an extravagance, more and more are arguments indicating that giving birth at home is safe.
There are couples who find greater security in a hospital, while others prefer the privacy of their own home to give birth. I think the important thing is to have the possibility to choose.
For those who need scientific guarantees of the security of home birth, months ago the Ministry of Health echoed an investigation carried out in the Netherlands and now a study conducted in Canada provides new evidence that giving birth at home is safe.
In countries like Holland or the United Kingdom it is common for women to have their babies at home, but in other countries it is not yet fully extended. It may be due to lack of information or custom.
Therefore, studies such as Canadian help us to know more about the guarantees of home births.
Whenever it is a low-risk pregnancy, that the delivery is attended by a registered midwife, there is good transportation and an adequate referral system in case of any complications, giving birth at home is a safe alternative to the hospital, says the study.
The rate of infant death in home births attended by a registered midwife did not differ from that of planned births in hospitals.
For every thousand births, the infant death rate was 0.35% in home deliveries, compared with 0.57% in deliveries assisted by a midwife in the hospital and 0.64% in hospital deliveries performed by doctors.
Women who gave birth at home were less likely to have electronic fetal monitoring, assisted vaginal delivery, significant tears in the birth canal and bleeding after delivery than those treated in hospitals.
On the other hand, babies born at home were less likely to require resuscitation and oxygen therapy after 24 hours, although they were more likely to be admitted to medical centers.
Without a doubt, it is an interesting information to consider for those they consider giving birth in their own homes.
