There was just one Caesarean hysterectomy in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda in 2004, according to the annual report of the maternity unit for that year. The Caesarean rate in the hospital was just under 27 per cent from 3,357 births.
The woman had been admitted with bleeding and her placenta was found to be deeply embedded in the uterus. The operation was performed after she had lost more than eight litres of blood. She made a full recovery.
The report also reveals that 13 per cent of births were to non-Irish mothers, with a drop in the number of births to Nigerian women from 10.4 per cent in 2003 to 4.6 in 2004
Consultant obstetrician Dr Máire Milner said the figures were "comparable with any other maternity hospital".
The percentage of mothers between 25 and 29 years dropped from 28 to 26.5 per cent while those aged between 30 and 34 rose from 34 to 35.4 per cent.
