Introduction: Umbilical cord blood analysis is used to assess fetal oxygenation and acid–base status. This study aims to compare the early umbilical artery blood gas measurement results of fetuses delivered by term vaginal birth and elective cesarean section. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included women with term pregnancies admitted for vaginal delivery (n=100) or planned cesarean section (n=100) at the Aksaray University Medical Faculty Hospital Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology between January and December 2024. Results: No significant difference was found between the vaginal and cesarean delivery groups in terms of age, smoking status, education level, numbers of pregnancies and miscarriages, gestational age at delivery, fetal sex, birth weight, or baby length. However, significant differences were observed in APGAR scores at the first 7.2±0.5 for vaginal delivery vs 6.9±0.7 for cesarean section, p<0.001 and fifth 8.9±0.6 vs 8.7±0.5, p<0.001 minutes. Significant differences were also determined between the vaginal and cesarean delivery groups in terms of pH (7.28±0.19 vs 7.30±0.1, respectively, p=0.009), pCO2 (18.08±4.07 vs 20.53±3.44, p=0.010), pO2 (18.08±4.07 vs 20.53±3.44, p<0.001), sO2 (97.17±3.04 vs 93.09±4.25, p<0.001), base deficit (3.41±1.03 vs 2.33±0.61, p<0.001), HCO3 (20.69±4.25 vs 23.17±6.56, p=0.011), lactate (1.54±0.42 vs 1.20±0.44, p<0.001), hemoglobin (15.70±2.83 vs 14.57±2.03, p<0.001), hematocrit (49.76±5.41 vs 44.85±5.10, p<0.001), potassium (3.91±0.21 vs 3.71±0.26, p<0.001), and glucose (6.47±0.97 vs 4.15±1.13, p<0.001) levels. Conclusion: The study findings show that umbilical cord arterial blood gas parameters vary significantly according to the method of delivery. Further larger multicenter studies involving more participants are needed to clarify the relationship between fetal umbilical cord arterial blood gases and mode of delivery.
Bülbül et al. (Sat,) studied this question.