Cain Polidano|Anna Zhu|Joel C. Bornstein
The relation between cesarean birth and child cognitive development
University of Melbourne|University of Melbourne|University of Melbourne
first detailed study relation cesarean birth child cognitive development measure differences child cognitive performance 4 9 years age cesareanborn vaginallyborn children n 3666 participating longitudinal study australian children lsac lsac nationally representative birth cohort surveyed biennially using multivariate regression control large range confounders related perinatal risk factors socioeconomic advantage associated cesareanborn children across several measures find cesareanborn children perform significantly vaginallyborn children tenth standard deviation national numeracy test scores age 89 estimates lowrisk subsample lowerbound analysis suggest relation spuriously related unobserved confounding lower rates breastfeeding adverse child maternal health outcomes associated cesarean birth found explain less third cognitive gap points importance mechanisms disturbed gut microbiota findings underline need precautionary approach responding requests planned cesarean apparent elevated risks vaginal birth