Having a cesarean delivery could put women at a higher risk of experiencing ectopic pregnancies or stillbirths in the future.
Despite the increase in risk, the chance of these complications occurring is still low, HealthDay reported.
The research was published in the July 1 issue of the journal PLoS Medicine.
To make their findings the researchers looked at data from 833,000 first-time mothers who underwent cesarean sections. They found the women who had a C-section were 14 percent more likely to experience a stillbirth than those who had a vaginal delivery. A stillbirth is characterized as a fetus that has died after more than 20 weeks of gestation.
The findings suggests having a cesarean section increases the absolute risk of stillbirth by 0.03 percent; meaning for every 3,000 C-sections there would be one extra stillbirth.
The research team also found women who had a cesarean birth for their first baby were nine percent more likely to experience an ectopic pregnancy than women who had a vaginal delivery.
This represents an absolute increased risk of 0.1 percent, meaning that for every 1,000 cesarean deliveries there would be one extra ectopic pregnancy.
"Pregnancy begins with a fertilized egg. Normally, the fertilized egg attaches itself to the lining of the uterus. With an ectopic pregnancy, the fertilized egg implants somewhere outside the uterus," Mayo Clinic reported.
Having a C-section does not increase a mother's risk of miscarriage in future pregnancies. A miscarriage is described as a fetus that is lost before 20 weeks of gestation according to researchers at University College Cork in Ireland and Aarhus University in Denmark, HealthDay reported.
"The findings of the current study are particularly important for expectant mothers as well as health care professionals as cesarean section rates are increasing significantly worldwide," study author Louise Kenny said, HealthDay reported.
