A National Cohort Study to Investigate the Association Between Ethnicity and the Provision of Care in Obstetric Anesthesia in England Between 2011 and 2021

Abstract

(Anaesthesia. 2023;78:820–829) Evidence exists that there are ethnic disparities in obstetric and neonatal care in the UK, showing that maternal death, stillbirth, preterm labor, and fetal growth restriction are more common in Black and South Asian women compared with White women. In addition, ethnic minorities more often report a negative maternity care experience than White women. In a similar vein, ethnic differences in anesthesia care in the UK have not been studied; in the United States, research has shown that black women are less likely to receive neuraxial anesthesia (NA) and are more likely to receive general anesthesia (GA), but this may potentially reflect socioeconomic status in a way that is not generalizable to the UK health care system. This study used national maternity data to examine ethnic disparities in delivery of anesthesia, with specific focus on GA for individuals undergoing cesarean delivery (CD) and NA for individuals undergoing vaginal delivery (VD).