Caesarian Section
Today, the caesarian section or c-section is a common operation, accounting for about one-in-three births in the United States. While stories suggest that Julius Caesar was born by caesarean, this seems less-than-likely, as his mother lived well into his adulthood. Roman law ordered that the attempt be made to save the child of a dead or dying mother by cutting her open, likely lending Caesar’s name to the operation.
It is almost certain that the earliest c-sections took place on dying or dead mothers, either in an attempt to save the baby or to remove the baby for a separate burial and death rituals. There was no expectation that mothers would or could survive surgical births. Alternatives were few; high forceps were developed in the early 17th century, but often caused lasting damage—in some cases, worse than the risks associated with a c-section. Prior to the invention of forceps, the fetal skull was destroyed and fetus removed piece-by-piece.
In 1500, a Swiss pig gelder named Jacob Nufer performed a c-section on his wife, after several days of labor and the efforts of multiple midwives failed. Both she and the child were said to have survived; however, there is no way of ascertaining the truth of this tale. History provides other occasional mentions of successful caesarean sections before the era of modern medicine; however, with limited understanding of anatomy, lack of access to anesthesia, and no knowledge of antiseptic practices, it seems unlikely the mother would have survived the surgery.
By the middle of the 19th century, the introduction of anesthesia made childbirth a less painful experience, and made c-sections more available. The widespread introduction of antiseptic practices improved survival rates from c-sections and helped to reduce the overall rate of maternal mortality.