comparison of frequency vaginal and cesarean deliveries

background: we investigated the rate of vaginal childbirth and cesarean and its causes in maternity wards of imam khomeini educational hospital in ahwaz the capital city of khuzestan province and al- hadi hospital in shoostar as a traditional city. methods: in this comparative descriptive study data were obtained from medical records of birth deliveries in six months (march to september) in year 2007. data were analyzed using spss software. results: the results show a total rate of 29% cesarean and 71% vaginal childbirth in hospitals. the rate of cesarean in imam and al -hadi hospitals was 23% and 33%, respectively. the main cause of cesarean in imam and al-hadi hospitals was failure of labor progression (35% and 33%, respectively). most cesarean s were occurred in an age range of 20-25 yr. conclusion: comparing with international acceptable rate (20-22%), cesarean rate in both hospitals was high. it seems spe­cial attention should be made by persons, committees or organizations in charge of community health to child birth practices in both hospitals.