Enhancing recovery after cesarean delivery – A narrative review

Enhanced recovery after cesarean delivery (ERAC) is increasingly being implemented worldwide with the aim to improve patient care for women undergoing this procedure. ERAC is associated with superior maternal outcomes including decreased length of hospital stay, opioid consumption, pain scores, times to mobilization and urinary catheter removal and hospitalization costs, without increasing hospital readmission rates. A number of preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative interventions have been incorporated into ERAC protocols. The evidence base for each intervention varies, and there is a lack of consensus as to which are the best and most appropriate interventions. The quality of evidence of studies evaluating ERAC is low, and the measurements for reporting its success are varied and disparate. Protocols rarely assess patient-reported outcome measures, patient satisfaction, or patient experience. The best measures of ERAC success are yet to be fully elucidated. Further work is required to evaluate protocols, interventions, and how best to measure the effect of ERAC.