New research highlights the need for healthcare providers to discuss the risks of elective Cesarean sections with their patients.

Researchers are still relatively unsure as to whether newborns delivered via C-section are more likely to develop chronic disease later in life, but ongoing research is beginning to determine a concerning correlation, NYU Langone Medical Center reported.

"It is clear that cesarean-born children have worse health, but further research is needed to establish whether it is the cesarean that causes disease, or whether other factors are at play," said Jan Blustein, MD, PhD, of New York University's Wagner School and a professor of Medicine and Population Health at NYU School of Medicine. "Getting definitive answers will take many years of further research. In the interim, we must make decisions based on the evidence that we have. To me, that evidence says that it is reasonable to believe that cesarean has the potential for long-term adverse health consequences for children."

Researchers recently reviewed evidence from a variety of sources, including observational studies of large populations of children as well as a clinical trial in which expecting mothers were randomly selected to undergo cesarean or vaginal delivery. The study's findings bring up concerns that C-section may lead to worse long-term child health. These risks are not yet mentioned in clinical guides, but the researchers believe the findings suggest it is time to start looking into updating current guidelines.

"It takes a while for research findings to reach clinicians and patients," Blustein said. "This research isn't widely known. It is time for that to change, so that doctors, midwives and patients can weigh the risks and benefits of elective cesarean, and decide accordingly."

The findings were published in a recent edition of the British Medical Journal.