The Long-Run Effects of Cesarean Sections




Ana María Costa-Ramón, Mika Kortelainen, Ana Rodríguez-González, Lauri Sääksvuori

PublisherUniversity of Wisconsin Press

Madison, Wiaconsin

2022

Journal of Human Resources

57

2048

2085

1548-8004

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.58.2.0719-10334R1(external)

https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/48744182(external)



This paper analyzes the long-term effects of potentially avoidable  C-sections on children's health. Using Finnish administrative data, we document that physicians perform more unplanned C-sections during their regular working hours on days that precede a weekend or public holiday and use this exogenous variation as an instrument for C-sections. We supplement our instrumental variables results with a differences-in-differences estimation that exploits variation in birth mode within sibling pairs and across families. Our results suggest that avoidable unplanned C-sections increase the risk of asthma, but do not affect other immune-mediated disorders previously associated with C-sections.


Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 23:23