Vaginal delivery

A vaginal delivery is the birth of offspring in mammals (babies in humans) through the vagina (also called the "birth canal"). It is the most common method of childbirth worldwide. It is considered the preferred method of delivery, as it is correlated with lower morbidity and mortality than caesarean sections (C-sections), though it is not clear whether this is causal.

70% of births in the United States in 2019 were vaginal deliveries.

80% of births globally in 2021 were vaginal deliveries, with rates varying from 95% in sub-Saharan Africa to 45% in the Caribbean.

Benefits for the mother include

Benefits for the infant include:

Different types of vaginal deliveries have different terms:

Labor is characterized by uterine contractions which push the fetus through the birth canal and results in delivery. Labor is divided into three stages.

Complications of vaginal delivery can be grouped into the following criteria; failure to progress, abnormal fetal heart rate tracing, intrapartum hemorrhage, and post-partum hemorrhage.