BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Female physicians, especially gynecologists and pediatricians, have a comprehensive knowledge of the complications caused by Cesarean section. These specialists play a pivotal role in raising maternal awareness, providing prenatal care, performing screening tests and delivery of healthy infants. Given the significant correlation between the type of delivery and the mental development of neonates, this study aimed to compare the rate of Cesarean section among female gynecologists and pediatricians with other specialists.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 179 female physicians with at least one living, healthy child in 2012. Data were collected using questionnaires including the degree of specialty, mode of delivery and the reason (medical or non-medical), maternal age at birth time and the employment status of the subjects.

FINDINGS: In total, more than 60% of the studied specialists chose Cesarean delivery for non-medical reasons, and the rate of C-section among gynecologists and pediatricians was 2.36 times higher compared to other specialists. In addition, the possibility of C-section declined to 42% with the increasing number of childbirths, and the risk of C-section increased between 25-30% with the age. Gynecologists and pediatricians preferred C-section 4.2 times than other specialists, and no significant differences were observed between the employment status of the subjects (faculty members vs. Others) and the choice of delivery mode.

CONCLUSION: According to the results of this study, the preference of C-section for non-medical reasons was noticeably higher among gynecologists and pediatricians compared to other specialists. Therefore, these two groups could not be considered as a proper model to reduce the rate of C-section