Background: Egypt has the third highest caesarean section rate (54%) in the world and lacks a standard
classification system to analyse caesarean section rates. The World Health Organization (WHO)
recommends the Robson classification as an effective caesarean section analysis and monitoring tool.
Aim: To analyse the caesarean section rate of Benha University Hospital, Egypt using the standard 10-
Group Robson classification system.
Method: A prospective, cross-sectional study was conducted at the Benha University Hospital from 1 April
to 30 June 2018. All women admitted for childbirth were categorised into Robson groups to determine the
absolute and relative contribution made by each group to the overall caesarean section rate. Epi Data
V.3.1 software programme was used to analyse the data.
Findings: 850 women gave birth during the study period, 466 (55%) by caesarean section (CS). Robson
Group 5 (multiparous, term, cephalic presentation and previous caesarean section) contributed the most
(36%) to the overall CS rate. 175/308 (56%) women in this group had previously undergone one caesarean
section. Group 6 (all nulliparous women with single breech pregnancy) and Group10 (cephalic preterm
pregnancies) were the second and the third greatest contributors toward the overall CS rate, with 4.6%
and 2.8% respectively.
Conclusions: In keeping with other studies, Groups 5, 6, and 10 were the main contributors to the overall
caesarean section rate. We found Robson classification to be clinically relevant and an effective tool to
analyse the caesarean section rate even in settings with limited resources.
© 2019 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevie