Just Take It Out! : The Ethics and Economics of Cesarean Section and Hysterectomy [Paperback]

D. Campbell Walters (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1999

The title

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

D. Campbell Walters was born and educated in England. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and Economics from the University of Sussex and a Master's degree in Chemical Spectroscopy from the University of East Anglia.

In 1976 he moved to the United States and worked for a number of years in Production Management and Manufacturing Engineering in the field of medical diagnostics.

Dr. Walters attended medical school at the University of California, Irvine where, after receiving his Doctor of Medicine degree, he completed a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Obstestrics and Gynecology and a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honors society.

He now lives in rural Southern Illinois with his wife and four children. He maintains a busy practice in general OB/GYN and also lectures at medical residency programs nationwide.

Product Details

• Paperback: 278 pages
• Publisher: Topiary Pub (February 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966716205
• ISBN-13: 978-0966716207
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,329,777 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An insightful analysis of cesarean delivery, October 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Just Take It Out! : The Ethics and Economics of Cesarean Section and Hysterectomy (Paperback)

I want to thank Dr. Walters personally for writing this helpful book about the valid reasons for cesarean delivery and the bind that doctors are in as far as offering the full range of delivery choices to their patients. Dr. Walters includes some great patient case studies and debunks some of the misinformation currently circulating about cesarean deliveries. He also has some interesting musings about how childbirth may change 100s of years from now. After my first child was delivered by emergency cesarean, I realized by other women's reactions that vaginal delivery is a rite of passage -- plain and simple. It doesn't matter what precipitated the cesarean -- you just didn't try hard enough or had a very incompetent doctor. This is the first book I've seen that actually validates my delivery experience. When I became pregnant with my second child, after talking with my doctor and personally thinking over the factors that led to my emergency cesarean, I decided that a scheduled cesarean was a much safer choice for my baby and me than a VBAC. Since making that choice, nearly every woman I've come in contact with has asked disapprovingly why I am not attempting a VBAC. This is the only book I've seen that supports the reasoning that went into my decision.

17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An elective cesarean section is a viable birthing option, August 3, 2000

By 

Dr. Y. Zevering (Amsterdam Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Just Take It Out! : The Ethics and Economics of Cesarean Section and Hysterectomy (Paperback)

I was very relieved to read Dr. Walter's book. He puts forward an idea that I find eminently acceptable, that is, an elective cesarean section is a viable option for birthing one's child. He discusses the misconceptions regarding this mode of birth, the most important one being that a cesarean section (CS) is more dangerous than vaginal birth. He points out that while an emergency CS is indeed more dangerous than a successful vaginal birth in terms of maternal mortality and morbidity, these statistics cannot be used to determine the relative risks of an elective CS versus an attempted vaginal birth. If one compares women who choose to have an elective CS prior to labor to those who attempt a vaginal birth (most of whom will be successful but a good proportion of whom will require emergency CSs), it is plain that an elective CS is no more dangerous than attempting vaginal birth. I am a medical scientist and consequently was able to check his facts thoroughly, which took me a couple of months of medline searching and analysis of the key papers. My first observation from all this literature analysis is that an elective CS as a birthing option is clearly a very politically fraught subject. Many people obviously have very emotional feelings about childbirth, and this is reflected in the medical policies and also - often - in the interpretation of scientific data regarding elective CS. I observed many times that authors made conclusions that toed the current line of thinking in obstetric gynecology - i.e. that CSs are dangerous and that everyone should be hellbent on getting women to attempt vaginal birth - despite the fact that these conclusions were not backed by their own scientific data. Essentially, Dr. Walters's statistics regarding maternal mortality are correct. In addition, the scientific evidence I found also supports his assertion that an elective CS is safer for the baby. Finally, in weighing the pros and cons of elective CS vs vaginal birth, Dr. Walters also discusses the long-term maternal consequences of vaginal birth, namely one has a greater risk of suffering permanent urinary and fecal incontinence and pelvic prolapse problems, not to mention an increased likelihood of sexual dissatisfaction. My only criticism of this book is that he does not give an idea of how frequent these long-term problems are, but I found from the scientific literature that 50% of women giving birth vaginally feel sex is not the same as before the birth, and that 5% of women may suffer long-term urinary incontinence, while 1% may suffer long-term fecal incontinence. Elective CSs appear to protect women from these problems. What I also discovered from the medical literature is how underreported these long-term problems are. One study found that of 70 women giving birth vaginally, 7 still had problems with fecal incontinence a year later and 3 of these were soiling on a daily basis, yet only one had seen a doctor about this. Perhaps women believe that this is what they have to put up with to have their child, so there's no point complaining about it. I will be giving birth to my child by an elective CS. I had to go to another country to arrange this, as I was denied this choice in the Netherlands. While I completely support the right of women to give birth vaginally, I also think that my right to give birth via an elective CS should be accepted, no matter whether people think this is `unnatural' or not, because the medical evidence is not consistent with the assertion that an elective CS is more dangerous for mother and child than attempting vaginal birth. For having the clear-eyed courage to go against the grain, I give Dr. Walters top marks for writing this book.

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Could not have said it any better myself!, May 29, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Just Take It Out! : The Ethics and Economics of Cesarean Section and Hysterectomy (Paperback)

This book is thought-provolking and bold. I am a practicing ob-gyn and I offer my thanks to Dr. Walters for saying almost exactly the things I have been thinking for years. There is already too much extremism on the left of these issues. The demand for cesarean deliveries and hysterectomies is patient driven and not physician driven. In fact, these procedures are both safe and life altering. The impression that doctors are victimizing their patients to get rich is widespread and false. A must read for ob-gyn doctors and the patients they care for.