Early Discharge After Cesarean Delivery: New Insights from Recent Research

According to the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE; 2024), women who are S/P scheduled CS and recovering well, who are afebrile, and do not have complications, should be discharged early (after 24 h) and followed at home because this is not related to the readmission of the baby or mother. However, the first 24 hours after a C-section can be challenging, with many of the same challenges as a vaginal delivery PLUS the usual post-surgical issues: The mother will be adjusting to new parenthood, attempting breastfeeding, and fielding visitors; the incision will be sore, and pain may increase as anesthesia wears off. Is this postop plan coming to the USA? A soon to be published systematic review and meta-analysis (Dec 2024) in the AJOG MFM seems to favor that. Is this the new progression of the postop ERAS protocol? Listen in for details.