New study links C-sections with hysterectomy complications later in life

— -- A new study found that women who undergo a cesarean section delivery may have an increased risk of complications when undergoing a hysterectomy later in life.

Women who have undergone one cesarean delivery had a 31.1 percent increased risk of re-operation after a hysterectomy later in life, when compared with women having only vaginal deliveries, according to the study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Surgery journal.

Meanwhile, women who have had two or more cesarean deliveries may have an even higher risk of a re-operation following a hysterectomy, researchers found.

The study comes at a time when approximately one-third of all births in the United States are deliveries by C-section, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It can be easy to forget that a c-section is a major abdominal operation, ABC News' Chief Women's Health Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton said. In the future, after delivering a baby, many women may need other surgeries, and these future operations can become more complicated because of the internal scar tissue left behind from a c-section.

Ashton added that there are still things that can be done for women who have had a C-section to lower their future risks of post-surgery complications, including not smoking and keeping their weight in a healthy, non-obese, range.

Ashton said it is also important to remember that c-sections are often necessary procedures, but the new study is important to keep in mind for the cases when they may not be necessary.