Episiotomy use in the United States, 1979–1997

To describe episiotomy usage at vaginal delivery in the United States from 1979-1997.We used the National Hospital Discharge Survey, a federal database of a national sample of inpatient hospitals. Data from 1979 to 1997 were analyzed using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes for diagnoses and procedures. Rates per 1000 women were calculated using the 1990 census population for women aged 15-44...