International Journal of
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Research Article Volume 12 Issue 1
Decision delivery interval of caesarean section and neonatal outcomes at a Tertiary Hospital in the Gambia
Matthew Anyanwu, , Admire Coker, , Noura Mathew, Donkor Simon
Received: February 21, 2026 | Published: March 23, 2026
Citation: Anyanwu M, Coker A, Mathew N. Decision delivery interval of caesarean section and neonatal outcomes at a Tertiary Hospital in the Gambia. Pregnancy & Child Birth. 2026;12(1):23‒-. DOI: 10.15406/ipcb.2026.12.00336
Abstract
Background: Following a caesarean section performed under spinal or general anaesthesia, a common implication is the association of neonatal outcome and decision delivery interval (DDI). The common assumption is, the longer the decision delivery interval, the poorer the neonatal outcome. Therefore, knowing this in our setting will inform practice and add value in our obstetrics practice. Methodology: The design was a cross sectional study on women who had emergency caesarean section at Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital from July to September 2023. A structured data collection tool was used to collect data. The data was entered into a computer database and analyzed using the SPSS version 26. Results were expressed in simple descriptive statistics with graphs and tables. Results: Mean DDI was 132.5 minutes. Majority (66.2%) of the neonates had good Apgar scores at 1 minute of birth after emergency caesarean section. Majority (40.8%) of the emergency CS were performed within 75 minutes of the decision. The two (2) neonatal deaths had emergency caesarean section (EmCs) within 30 minutes and majority (62.5%) of the NICU admissions were for neonates delivered within 75 minutes of the decision. Ninety seven percent (97%) of the neonates survived. Conclusion: A decision delivery interval of 31 to 75 minutes for emergency caesarean section was not associated with adverse neonatal outcome.
Keywords: Decision-delivery Interval, caesarean Section, neonatal outcome
©2026 Anyanwu, et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially.