402 PAGES / ISBN 978-1-61614-511-8 / PAPERBACK / $21.00/ 18.

99 Publication:February 2012 / Also available in ebook format

An excellent presentation of the complex issues surrounding Maternal Request Cesarean Delivery. In this era of informed consent, the authors have addressed the most common and most debated pros and cons in such detail as to allow the individual patient and her physician to make a truly informed decision. Dr. Ralph W. Hale, MD, FACOG, executive vice president, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists At last a sensible and easy-to-read book about the pros and cons of cesarean at the mothers request. It reviews the scientific evidence thoroughly enough to satisfy professionals but also explains it in straightforward language for the nonmedical reader. Phil Steer, emeritus professor, Imperial College London; editor in chief, BJOG, An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology

Magnus Murphy, MD (Calgary, Alberta, Canada), is the author (with Carol L. Wasson) of Pelvic Health and Childbirth: What Every Woman Needs to Know. He is an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Calgary. He is also in private practice specializing in pelvic floor disorders and at the Pelvic Floor Clinic at the Calgary Regional Health Authority. He created the website www.pelvicfloor.com, which provides information on these disorders. Pauline McDonagh Hull (Farnham, Surrey, UK) is a journalist and editor of www.electivecesarean.com, a website that provides specific information on elective cesareans and offers support to women with this birth plan. She also campaigns for recognition of the legitimacy of planned cesareans via her blog www.cesareandebate.blogspot.com

esarean delivery is often portrayed as an emergency procedure, which a woman must only resort to if she cannot deliver naturally. As such, planning a cesarean without any medical or obstetrical need is frowned upon in many quarters, and doctors who are willing to perform elective cesareans are sometimes even accused of unethical conduct. Choosing Cesarean argues that these attitudes are misguided. While not promoting planned cesarean delivery as the best or safest option for all women, obstetrician and gynecologist Magnus Murphy, MD, and journalist and campaigner Pauline McDonagh Hull make a convincing case that surgery is a legitimate decision for informed women to make. By offering a wealth of medical evidence from around the world, which readers are unlikely to find elsewhere, the authors demonstrate beyond doubt that a planned cesarean at thirty-nine weeks is the safest way for a baby to be born. For mothers, although the risks in each case are different, it is no less safe than a vaginal birth. Chapters delve into the politics of birth, the true risks and actual costs of cesareans, the irrefutable evidence on pelvic floor protection, sex and satisfaction, a minute-byminute guide to the day of surgery, tips for preparation and recovery, worldwide cesarean rates, attitudes and experiences, plus the doctors who choose cesareans. Written in accessible, jargon-free language and including a helpful glossary of medical terms and an intensively researched reference section, Choosing Cesarean is a very useful guide for women, their families, and medical professionals as well.

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