On Monday, the Ministry of Health and the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) published a joint report on the evolution of Luxembourg’s birth rate since 2017, as well as the management of perinatal care.
The birth rate in the Grand Duchy picked up again from 2017-2019, following a slight decrease from 2014-2016. 3.1% more births were recorded over the later period, coinciding with fewer Caesarean deliveries and fewer inductions, according to the report.
30.5% of babies delivered between 2017 and 2019 were born via C-section - a 2% reduction compared to 2014-2016. In 2019, the C-section rate dropped below 30% for the first time in a decade. The number of emergency Caesarean deliveries also reduced by 1% compared to the previous period.
The number of episiotomies also decreased, used for around 20% of all births in 2017, dropping to barely 14% in 2019. This corresponds to recommendations published in 2015 by France’s National College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians, which estimated that national rates for this practice should sit below 30% of births.
In November 2022, a Eurostat report on births and perinatal care showed that Luxembourg ranked favourably according to key indicators such as perinatal and neonatal mortality, and stillbirths.
The report, which looked at data gathered from 2015-2019, further considered indicators such as birthweight and length of gestation, population characteristics, healthcare services and delivery methods, across 24 EU member states, as well as Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
According to the Ministry of Health, Luxembourg ranked in the so-called high European average. It should be noted that for indicators such as infant mortality, countries with fewer births, such as the Grand Duchy, require some nuance when interpreting the data.
In the Grand Duchy, child-bearing women tend to be older than the EU average, accompanied by a high proportion of mothers with foreign nationality (around 35% of all births between 2017 and 2019). The number of mothers without EU nationalities has increased by 18.7%, compared to 10% in the previous period studied.
In terms of care during and after pregnancy, 99.6% of expectant mothers in Luxembourg are accompanied by healthcare professionals throughout their pregnancies, while 92.6% consult a doctor starting from their first trimester. In addition, a 2022 reform now means that expectant mothers have more flexibility when selecting midwifery services.
