Baby filmed 'delivering itself' in 'natural caesarean'

A UK mother has shared a video of a “natural caesarean” in which her baby appears to “wriggle himself” out of her womb over several minutes.

Sarah Saunders, from Devon, was filmed smiling as an obstetrician cut open her uterus and lifted the baby’s head out.

The obstetrician then holds the baby’s head up as the pressure behind allows the baby to slowly slide itself out.

“He’s definitely delivering himself,” a staff member in the room can be heard saying as the baby begins to wail.

“Have you seen something, is it a boy?” Ms Saunders asks.

Ms Sanders said it was a birthing experience she would “cherish forever”.

“I wanted to share this video to show that if you are unable to give birth ‘naturally’ that having a natural caesarean is the next best thing,” Saunders wrote on the video.

“Natural caesareans” – in which babies are slowly delivered over four to five minutes instead of the usual two - are reportedly growing in popularity as a way to soften the baby’s trauma of a sudden delivery into the world and promote bonding between mother and baby.

But Brisbane obstetrician Dr Gino Pecoraro dismissed the concept as a “fanciful and trendy gimmick”.

“We’ve made it so safe for both mothers and babies that people have forgotten how dangerous having babies can be, and how serious a procedure it is,” Dr Percoraro told ninemsn.

“I don’t really think there is a huge place for it. I would implore, I would beg people not to forget what it’s all about which is safety first for mothers and babies.”

Dr Pecoraro said he personally would not be comfortable performing the procedure.

“I’m certainly not happy to have cut open into the uterus where I have affected the blood supply and then take four or five minutes to deliver the baby,” he said.

“Why add another layer of complexity to something which is surgery? You have to give it the degree of gravitas it deserves.”