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Ministry of Health
TABLE 10
LIVE BIRTHS BY LOCAL HEALTH AREA AND MODE OF DELIVERY
BRITISH COLUMBIA, 1998

        Cesarean     Total Live Births
Local Health Area Spontaneous Vertex First Repeat Total Ratio (p) Percent Other N.S. Number Rate
001 Fernie 116 14 12 26 0.77   16.3 18 - 160 9.94
002 Cranbrook 194 25 16 41 0.79   16.7 9 2 246 9.44
003 Kimberley 63 8 3 11 0.68   14.3 2 1 77 8.57
004 Windermere 58 4 6 10 0.62   13.2 5 3 76 8.35
005 Creston 84 12 8 20 0.85   17.9 6 2 112 8.46
006/007 Kootenay Lake/Nelson 193 35 7 42 0.79   16.7 14 3 252 8.65
009 Castlegar 90 20 10 30 1.10   23.3 9 - 129 9.33
010 Arrow Lakes 45 3 3 6 0.52   10.9 4 - 55 10.16
011 Trail 107 26 17 43 1.25   26.4 13 - 163 7.74
012/013 Grand Forks/Kettle Valley 73 8 13 21 0.97   20.4 5 4 103 7.79
014 Southern Okanagan 110 15 10 25 0.79   16.6 16 - 151 8.10
015 Penticton 276 19 17 36 0.51 * 10.8 20 - 332 8.26
016 Keremeos 46 5 1 6 0.54   11.3 1 - 53 11.31
017 Princeton 34 1 2 3 0.37   7.7 2 - 39 7.46
018 Golden 51 10 9 19 1.16   24.4 5 3 78 10.10
019 Revelstoke 72 8 8 16 0.78   16.5 8 1 97 10.93
020 Salmon Arm 163 47 37 84 1.50 * 31.7 18 - 265 8.10
021 Armstrong-Spallumcheen 58 10 8 18 1.11   23.4 1 - 77 7.78
022 Vernon 407 75 43 118 1.00   21.1 33 - 558 9.45
023 Central Okanagan 1,000 156 90 246 0.87 * 18.4 88 6 1,340 8.95
024 Kamloops 732 145 99 244 1.11   23.4 65 3 1,044 9.93
025 100 Mile House 99 17 11 28 0.93   19.6 16 - 143 8.76
026 North Thompson 38 11 2 13 1.08   22.8 6 - 57 10.70
027 Cariboo-Chilcotin 251 66 36 102 1.28 * 27.0 25 - 378 12.90
028 Quesnel 215 46 30 76 1.13   23.9 27 - 318 11.49
029 Lillooet 31 11 11 22 1.66 * 34.9 10 - 63 12.79
030 South Cariboo 51 9 8 17 1.08   22.7 6 1 75 9.54
031 Merritt 107 17 19 36 1.14   24.0 7 - 150 12.31
032 Hope 69 11 5 16 0.83   17.6 6 - 91 10.64
033 Chilliwack 539 123 74 197 1.17 * 24.7 58 2 796 11.23
034 Abbotsford 1,178 167 151 318 0.92   19.3 145 3 1,644 14.38
035 Langley 896 179 94 273 1.01   21.3 109 1 1,279 11.37
036 Surrey 3,309 721 433 1,154 1.06   22.3 718 1 5,182 14.77
037 Delta 735 145 94 239 1.02   21.5 136 2 1,112 10.93
038 Richmond 1,088 241 126 367 1.06   22.2 194 2 1,651 10.18
040 New Westminster 446 89 22 111 0.81 * 17.2 89 1 647 12.04
041 Burnaby 1,446 235 115 350 0.82 * 17.3 232 - 2,028 10.70
042 Maple Ridge 615 126 73 199 1.05   22.0 87 2 903 11.91
043 Coquitlam 1,535 242 130 372 0.81 * 17.1 272 1 2,180 11.70
044 North Vancouver 936 159 98 257 0.92   19.3 135 1 1,329 10.20
045 West Vancouver-Bowen Is. 215 36 21 57 0.89   18.8 32 - 304 6.13
046 Sunshine Coast 161 33 16 49 1.01   21.3 19 1 230 8.51
047 Powell River 121 25 17 42 1.10   23.1 19 - 182 8.74
048 Howe Sound 255 63 26 89 1.07   22.5 50 1 395 12.99
049 Bella Coola Valley 30 5 3 8 0.84   17.8 7 - 45 13.12
050 Queen Charlotte 57 8 2 10 0.61   12.8 11 - 78 13.84
051 Snow Country 9 1 2 3 1.19   25.0 0 - 12 13.97
052 Prince Rupert 172 23 15 38 0.77   16.2 23 1 234 12.30
053 Upper Skeena 68 12 4 16 0.85   18.0 5 - 89 14.94
054 Smithers 162 38 33 71 1.36 * 28.7 14 - 247 13.09
055/093 Burns Lake/Eutsuk 79 9 11 20 0.92   19.4 4 - 103 13.15
056 Nechako 236 22 20 42 0.67 * 14.1 19 - 297 16.14
057 Prince George 892 180 107 287 1.08   22.7 79 4 1,262 11.75
059 Peace River South 245 44 22 66 0.91   19.2 33 - 344 11.65
060 Peace River North 356 52 30 82 0.82   17.2 37 1 476 15.80
061 Greater Victoria 1,164 340 146 486 1.28 * 26.9 152 2 1,804 8.72
062 Sooke 379 102 50 152 1.26 * 26.6 38 2 571 10.69
063 Saanich 266 82 43 125 1.41 * 29.7 30 - 421 6.92
064 Gulf Islands 59 12 6 18 0.96   20.2 11 1 89 6.21
065 Cowichan 353 82 40 122 1.09   23.0 55 1 531 9.98
066 Lake Cowichan 35 6 8 14 1.21   25.5 6 - 55 8.35
067 Ladysmith 111 20 13 33 0.99   20.9 13 1 158 9.58
068 Nanaimo 616 111 52 163 0.92   19.3 65 - 844 9.07
069 Qualicum 190 34 25 59 0.97   20.4 39 1 289 7.28
070 Alberni 230 38 26 64 0.98   20.7 15 - 309 9.25
071 Courtenay 380 72 41 113 1.00   21.0 45 - 538 9.03
072/084 Campbell River/V.I. West 331 65 40 105 1.03   21.6 48 2 486 10.65
075 Mission 296 58 36 94 1.00   21.1 55 - 445 11.95
076 Agassiz-Harrison 68 3 5 8 0.45 * 9.4 9 - 85 10.60
077 Summerland 65 6 6 12 0.69   14.6 5 - 82 7.17
078 Enderby 55 16 6 22 1.23   25.9 8 - 85 11.18
080 Kitimat 91 28 16 44 1.44 * 30.3 10 - 145 11.07
081 Fort Nelson 79 10 11 21 0.97   20.4 3 - 103 15.65
083 Central Coast 24 2 2 4 0.65   13.8 1 - 29 14.19
085 Vancouver Island North 146 26 15 41 0.96   20.3 15 - 202 12.93
087/094 Stikine/Telegraph Creek 14 2 1 3 0.84   17.6 - - 17 8.43
088 Terrace 215 48 19 67 1.04   21.8 25 - 307 12.81
092 Nishga 23 6 1 7 1.04   21.9 2 - 32 14.32
161 Vancouver City Centre 339 116 24 140 1.14   23.9 106 - 585 6.46
162 Vancouver Downtown E. Side 349 51 18 69 0.70 * 14.7 49 2 469 8.92
163 Vancouver North East 777 165 64 229 0.95   19.9 143 - 1,149 12.29
164 Vancouver West Side 632 159 57 216 1.05   22.2 124 1 973 7.97
165 Vancouver Midtown 697 163 66 229 1.02   21.5 140 - 1,066 12.46
166 South Vancouver 851 192 94 286 1.04   21.9 168 2 1,307 10.94
039 VANCOUVER TOTAL 3,645 846 323 1,169 1.00   21.1 730 5 5,549 9.84
  N.S. 1 1 - 1 -   - - - 2 -
  PROVINCIAL TOTAL 29,450 5,828 3,211 9,039 1.00   21.1 4,352 68 42,909 10.70

Note: Ratio - observed over the expected cesareans in the specified area. Percent based upon live births in the specified area. Rate per 1,000 population in the specified area. *Statistical testing indicates that observed cesarean births are significantly different from the expected (p<0.05, two tailed). Other is comprised of forceps / vacuum and spontaneous breech. LHA 039 Vancouver Total may include unspecified Vancouver addresses. N.S. - Not Stated. Non-residents are excluded.

FIGURE 9
CESAREAN DELIVERIES OF LIVE BORN INFANTS
BY LOCAL HEALTH AREA
BRITISH COLUMBIA, 1998

CESAREAN DELIVERIES OF LIVE BORN INFANTS BY LOCAL HEALTH AREA

Note: Ratio - Observed over the expected. Refer to Figure 1 to clarify geographical location of Local Health Areas.

HIGHLIGHTS TO TABLE 10/FIGURE 9

  • There were 9,039 cesarean deliveries of live born babies in 1998. There were 210.66 cesarean section deliveries per 1,000 live births, which was slightly higher than the 1994-1998 C-section rate of 203.15 shown in Appendix 3.

  • The cesarean ratio presented in Table 10 is the ratio of the observed number of C-section births to the expected number based on provincial cesarean section rates. The nine Local Health Areas (LHAs) with cesarean ratios which were statistically significant and high in 1998 (with the number of cesarean deliveries in parentheses) were:

    029Lillooet1.66(22)
    020Salmon Arm1.50(84)
    080Kitimat1.44(44)
    063Saanich1.41(125)
    054Smithers1.36(71)
    027Cariboo-Chilcotin1.28(102)
    061Greater Victoria1.28(486)
    062Sooke1.26(152)
    033Chilliwack1.17(197)

    Salmon Arm had the highest five-year C-section rate of 300.00 C-sections per 1,000 live births over the period 1994-1998 (Appendix 3).

  • The eight LHAs with cesarean ratios which were statistically significant and low in 1998 (with the number of cesarean deliveries in parentheses) were:

    076Agassiz-Harrison0.45(8)
    015Penticton0.51(36)
    056Nechako0.67(42)
    162Vancouver Downtown E. Side0.70(69)
    040New Westminster0.81(111)
    043Coquitlam0.81(372)
    041Burnaby0.82(350)
    023Central Okanagan0.87(246)

    Over the 1994-1998 period, Stikine/Telegraph Creek had the lowest C-section rate of 121.95 C-section deliveries per 1,000 live births (Appendix 3).

  • The 1998 provincial crude live birth rate was 10.70 live births per 1,000 population, slightly lower than the five-year rate of 11.74 for the 1994-1998 period. (Live birth rates are also presented in Table 1 and Appendix 3.) The five LHAs with the highest live birth rates in 1998 (actual numbers in parentheses) were:

    056Nechako16.14(297)
    060Peace River North15.80(476)
    081Fort Nelson15.65(103)
    053Upper Skeena14.94(89)
    036Surrey14.77(5,182)

    Nechako, Peace River North, and Fort Nelson were also among the five highest live birth rates for the five-year period 1994-1998 (shown in Appendix 3).

  • The five LHAs with the lowest live birth rates in 1998 (actual numbers in parentheses) were:

    045West Vancouver-Bowen Is. 6.13(304)
    064Gulf Islands6.21(89)
    161Vancouver City Centre6.46(585)
    063Saanich6.92(421)
    077Summerland7.17(82)

    All of the above, except Summerland, were among the five LHAs with the lowest live birth rates for 1994-1998 (Appendix 3).