Non-instrumental vaginal birth

Women who have a vaginal birth without intervention tend to have fewer postnatal complications and are more physically able in the short term to care for their new babies (Rowland & Redshaw 2012). For more information, see Clinical commentary.

This indicator looks at non-instrumental vaginal births for selected women giving birth for the first time.

Key findings

  • A gradual decrease in unassisted (non-instrumental) vaginal births for selected women giving birth for the first time is evident between 2004 and 2020.
  • This decrease across time is evident for both public and private hospitals, with a consistently higher proportion of selected women having unassisted vaginal births in the public sector compared to the private.
  • A higher proportion of selected women living in the most disadvantaged areas had unassisted vaginal births compared to those living in the least disadvantaged areas.

The interactive data visualisation below presents data on unassisted vaginal birth for selected women giving birth for the first time by selected maternal characteristics. Click the Data tables button to view the data between 2004 and 2020 and use the radio buttons to see how each characteristic has changed during this time.

Non-instrumental vaginal birth for selected women giving birth for the first time, by State/territory of birth and all Australia, 2004 to 2020.

This chart shows the proportion of women having a non-instrumental vaginal birth for selected women giving birth for the first time, by state/territory of birth, 2004 to 2020.  Data can be viewed for each state/territory of birth, and for all Australia. The proportion for selected women having a non-instrumental vaginal birth for selected women giving birth for the first time decreased from 53% in 2004 to 42% in 2020.

Clinical commentary

Maternal risks associated with vaginal birth include perineal tears, damage to the pelvic floor, pelvic organ prolapse, and persistent perineal or vulvar pain (van Roosmalen & Meguid 2014). Potential neonatal risks related to vaginal births include shoulder dystocia, hypoxia during labour and birth injuries (Hannah et al. 2000). 

Indicator specifications and data

Excel source data tables are available from the Data tab.

For more information refer to Specifications and notes for analysis in the technical notes.