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PLoS Medicine Issue Image | Vol. 17(11) February 2021

Delivery by cesarean section and childhood infections

Cesarean section is a common and important form of delivery in many settings worldwide, and numerous studies have addressed health outcomes for mother and child. Data on the long-term consequences of different modes of delivery are less abundant, however, and in a research article in PLOS Medicine, Jessica Miller and co-workers report a retrospective study of 7.1 million livebirths in 4 countries, seeking to addressing this gap. In an accompanying Perspective, Gordon Smith discusses the observed association of delivery by cesarean section with infectious diseases in infancy, in the context of allowing women to make informed decisions about their preferred method of delivery.

Image Credit: Flip Schulke, US National Archives, Flickr

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Delivery by cesarean section and childhood infections

Cesarean section is a common and important form of delivery in many settings worldwide, and numerous studies have addressed health outcomes for mother and child. Data on the long-term consequences of different modes of delivery are less abundant, however, and in a research article in PLOS Medicine, Jessica Miller and co-workers report a retrospective study of 7.1 million livebirths in 4 countries, seeking to addressing this gap. In an accompanying Perspective, Gordon Smith discusses the observed association of delivery by cesarean section with infectious diseases in infancy, in the context of allowing women to make informed decisions about their preferred method of delivery.

Image Credit: Flip Schulke, US National Archives, Flickr

https://doi.org/10.1371/image.pmed.v17.i11.g001