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PubMed2002

A state-wide assessment of the obstetric, anesthesia, and operative team personnel who are available to manage the labors and deliveries and to treat the complications of women who attempt vaginal birth after cesarean delivery.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine on a state-wide basis the range of obstetric, anesthesia, and surgical team personnel who were available immediately to manage the labors and deliveries of women who attempted vaginal birth after cesarean delivery. Additionally, we tried to determine whether hospitals had stopped performing vaginal births after cesarean delivery or made changes in their policies regarding vaginal birth after cesarean delivery as a result of recent American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommendations. STUDY DESIGN: Available immediately was defined as "being present in the hospital." All hospitals that provided obstetric care in the State of Ohio were surveyed to determine whether an obstetrician with cesarean privileges, an anesthesiologist, or an anesthetist capable of independently administering anesthesia for a cesarean section, and a surgical team were available immediately when women attempted vaginal birth after cesarean delivery. The hospitals were also asked whether they had stopped allowing vaginal births after cesarean delivery or had made changes in their vaginal birth after cesarean delivery policies in response to the recent recommendations of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Data were computerized and analyzed by the chi(2) test. RESULTS: Seventy-seven (93.9%), 35 (100%), and 13 (100%) of level I, II, and III hospitals performed vaginal births after cesarean delivery. An obstetrician was immediately available in 27.3%, 62.9%, and 100% of level I, II, and III institutions, respectively (P <or=.001). Anesthesia availability was 39%, 100%, and 100% of level I, II, and III institutions, respectively (P <or=.001). A surgical team was available in 35.1%, 97.1%, and 100% of level I, II, and III hospitals, respectively (P <or=.001). A complete complement was available in 15.6%, 62.9%, and 100% of level I, II and III institutions, respectively (P <or=.001). Two hospitals had stopped the performance of vaginal births after cesarean delivery, and 10 additional hospitals were considering stopping the performance of vaginal births after cesarean delivery. Policy changes had been adopted in 15 institutions, and 4 other institutions were considering changes. CONCLUSION: Most level I and many level II hospitals provide less than optimum staffing when women are attempting vaginal birth after cesarean delivery. Because vaginal births after cesarean delivery are equally distributed among level I, II, and III institutions in this state, many women may be attempting vaginal birth after cesarean delivery under less than optimal conditions. The data suggest the need for changes in staffing or referral patterns to safely meet the Healthy People 2010 goal of increasing the vaginal birth after cesarean delivery rate nationally.

Anesthesia, Obstetrical↗
PubMed1998

Is there an incremental rise in the risk of obstetric intervention with increasing maternal age?

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether increasing maternal age increases the risk of operative delivery and to investigate whether such a trend is due to fetal or maternal factors. DESIGN ANALYSIS: of prospectively collected data on a maternity unit database. SETTING: A postgraduate teaching hospital. POPULATION: 6410 nulliparous women with singleton cephalic pregnancies delivering at term (3742 weeks of gestation) between 1 January 92 and 31 December 95. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mode of delivery, rates of prelabour caesarean section, induction of labour and epidural usage. RESULTS: There was a positive, highly significant association between increasing maternal age and obstetric intervention. Prelabour (P < 0.001) and emergency (P < 0.001) caesarean section, instrumental vaginal delivery (spontaneous labour P < 0001; induced labour P = 0.001), induction of labour (P < 0.001) and epidural usage in spontaneous labour (P = 0.005) all increased with increasing age. In the second stage of labour fetal distress and failure to advance, requiring instrumental delivery, were both more likely with increasing maternal age (in both P < 0.001). Epidural usage in induced labour and the incidence of small for gestational age newborns did not increase with increasing maternal age (P = 0.68 and P = 0.50, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that increasing maternal age is associated with an incremental increase in obstetric intervention. Previous studies have demonstrated a significant effect in women older than 35 years of age, but these data show changes on a continuum from teenage years. This finding may reflect a progressive, age-related deterioration in myometrial function.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

The use of obstetrical procedures in the care of low-risk women.

Data from birth certificates were used to examine the pattern of obstetrical procedures used in the care of a sample of low-risk women. The data suggests that hospitals with greater technological capabilities and more specialized medical manpower have a greater tendency to use the obstetrical procedures of cesarean section, forceps delivery and drug induced labor. However, the utilization rates of these procedures also varied considerably between hospitals with comparable technology and medical staffs.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

[Changes in Norwegian obstetric practices, 1915-1961].

BACKGROUND: Established in 1967, the Medical Birth Registry of Norway has detailed accounts of all births in Norway. We have, however, only limited knowledge of obstetric practices in Norway in the decades before the Birth Registry was established. One important source is the annual reports of the Maternity Clinic in Oslo. MATERIAL: We analysed the annual reports for the period 1915-1961 with special emphasis on operative deliveries. RESULTS: The obstetric forceps was used in 6.5-12.5% (median 8.7%) of cephalic presentations. In 1960, the vacuum extractor was used for the first time. The rate of caesarean sections increased from 1.5% in the late 1930s to 6.3% in 1961. The proportion of operative deliveries increased up until 1944-55 when it was 14-16%, then fell in the years to 1960 when it was about 12%. Between 1915-1934, maternal mortality was as high as 6.4 per thousand. From the mid-1930s, it steadily decreased to 0.6 per thousand in the last five-year period. Well over one third of the deaths were caused by eclampsia or serious preeclampsia. INTERPRETATION: Birth traumas and neonatal death was the price paid for saving the mothers' lives and health. The operative activity was higher than what might be expected on the basis of the late-1960s data in the Birth Registry. The increase in caesarean sections was steepest during the Second World War, at a time when the number of deliveries in the clinic rose substantially.

Birth Rate↗
PubMed1978

Intrapartum maternal and fetal monitoring: the obstetric intensive care unit.

The Obstetric Intensive Care Unit (OBICU) at Bellevue Hospital in New York City has adapted intensive care and coronary care models to the care of patients in labor. During the past 3 years, 519 of the most serious of 2 250 high-risk obstetric patients treated at the hospital were monitored in the OBICU. There were two maternal and six perinatal deaths. The perinatal mortality rate of the very high risk population of the OBICU was 11.6/1 000, compared to 14.7/1 000 for all deliveries performed at the hospital. Our findings indicate that the OBICU system provides the ideal mechanism for the rapid and continuous control of symptoms in very high risk gravidas which is essential for stabilizing the patient, both for prompt delivery and for optimal maternal and fetal survival.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Obstetrics services--women's perspectives.

To obtain women's views of obstetric care 400 randomly selected mothers were interviewed postnatally. Since family planning is a constitutional right and all related services free of charge and virtually 100% of pregnant women attend the antenatal clinic, the questions asked were mainly oriented to evaluation of existing obstetric practice. Women were generally satisfied with labor and delivery care (71.2%), but as many as 88.2% of them expressed their dissatisfaction with postnatal care practice. Our women opted for optimal hospital perinatal care - a home-like postnatal care, possibilities for better bonding between mothers and newborn infants and more open, individually oriented communication with medical staff.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Obstetrical policy during labor and perinatal results: a comparison between two university clinics.

The obstetrical policy during labor at two University clinics in Nottingham (United Kingdom) and Nijmegen (The Netherlands) was investigated prospectively and simultaneously during a period of three months (1984). At the University of Nijmegen the obstetrical population tended to be more 'pathologic', and less intervention during labor was observed for early amniotomy, pain relief, induction and augmentation of labor. The pH in umbilical arterial blood was as a mean 0.01 unit lower in Nijmegen than in Nottingham. The validity of electronic fetal monitoring appeared to be higher in Nijmegen. It is concluded that data on the neonate probably cannot give an answer in favor of one of these policies. Parenthood information could give more conclusive evidence.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

The role of obstetrical rituals in the resolution of cultural anomaly.

To a technological society like that of the United States, the natural process of childbirth presents special conceptual dilemmas, as it calls into perpetual question any boundaries American culture tries to delineate between itself and nature. The author builds on previous works in which she has argued that the American core value system centers around science and technology, the institutions through which these are disseminated into society, and the patriarchal system through which these institutions are managed. A constant reminder that babies come from women and nature, not from technology and culture, childbirth confronts American society with practical, procedural dilemmas: How to create a sense of cultural control over birth, a natural process resistant to such control? How to make birth, a powerfully female phenomenon, reinforce, instead of undermine, the patriarchal system upon which American society is still based? How to turn the natural and individual birth process into a cultural rite of passage which successfully inculcates the dominant core value system into the initiates? In the absence of universal baptism, how to enculturate a non-cultural baby? Some of the dilemmas discussed in this article are universal problems presented by the birth process to all human societies; others are specific to American culture. Each contains within it a fundamental paradox, an opposition which must be culturally reconciled lest the anomaly of its existence undermine the fragile technology-based conceptual system in terms of which American society organizes itself. After a brief discussion of the history of this technological paradigm, the author analyzes eight of the dilemmas presented by childbirth to American society, demonstrating how they have been neatly resolved by obstetrical rituals specifically designed to removed birth's conceptual threat to the technological model by making birth appear, through technological means, to confirm instead of challenge the basic tenets of that model. From this perspective, routinely used obstetrical procedures such as electronic fetal monitoring, episiotomies, the lithotomy position, and even the Cesarean section emerge as rational ritual responses to the conflicts between reality as American society has constructed it, and the physiological realities of birth.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Improving emergency obstetric care in Mozambique: the story of Sofala.

OBJECTIVE: The 5-year project in the province of Sofala was designed to improve access, quality and utilization of emergency obstetric care (EmOC) by strengthening rural hospitals and health centers and ultimately the health system's capacity to respond to emergencies more quickly and effectively. METHODS: Implementation consisted of attention to infrastructure, human resource development, transportation and communication systems, and management. Specific management aspects that were targeted for improvement included: supportive supervision, logistics for supplies, equipment and drugs, record keeping, monitoring and evaluation, and quality improvement techniques such as maternal death audits. RESULTS: Access to EmOC improved with an increase in the number of fully functional EmOC facilities from 4 to 18. The number of women with obstetric complications who were admitted for treatment in participating facilities tripled, and the proportion of those women dying declined by half. CONCLUSIONS: Close collaboration and partnership with the provincial health directorate make the sustainability of many results likely while the replication of much of the Sofala model to other provinces is promising for the national strategy to reduce maternal mortality.

Emergency Medical Services↗
PubMed2000

[Anesthetic management of obstetrical labor in a parturient with muscular carnitine palmitoyl transferase deficiency].

We report a case of a patient with carnitine palmityl deficiency in active labour. We discuss the metabolic and energetic implications of obstetrical labour in regard with the mitochondrial myopathy and we propose an optimal management. Neuroaxial analgesia and glucose infusion are indicated in early labour because it is necessary to alleviate stress and pain in order to avoid rhabdomyolysis associated with CPT deficiency. Combined spinal epidural analgesia using intrathecal opioid alone then epidural naropein should be a relevant choice because of a minimal motor blockage. Monitoring of myolysis using serum creatinine phosphokinase levels must take in account CK and MB fractions releases to the circulation during obstetrical labour.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

[Anesthesia and analgesia in obstetrics].

Anesthesia in obstetrics includes the medical attendance of women in the delivery room as well as giving anesthesia for cesarean sections in the operating room. Over the last years the treatment of labor pain with epidural anesthesia has been modified. Whereas a couple of years ago local anesthetics were used almost exclusively, the recent trend goes toward a combination of local anesthetics with opioids. Using this combination the total amount of local anesthetic can be greatly reduced, whilst maintaining most of the motor function during labor. There is evidence the combination of local anesthetics with opioids can reduce the number of operative vaginal deliveries such as vacuum extraction or forceps. The systemic application of opioids remains unaffected by the local application and its significance is unaltered, even though the effectiveness compared to epidural application in managing labor pain is far inferior. Opioids applied systemically often have an unwanted sedative effect in the mother and have the potential for respiratory depression in the newborn. The question, whether epidural anesthesia increases the frequency of cesarean sections remains to be answered. Studies so far present discrepant results and do not show a causal relationship between the use of epidural anesthesia and increase in cesarean section rate. Regarding cesarean sections, there has been a trend in the operative field over the last years towards the use of regional anesthesia. This is the consequence of the fact that anesthesia related mortality during cesarean sections is still mainly due to hypoxia and aspiration during induction of anesthesia. The advantage of spinal anesthesia over epidural anesthesia is faster onset, more reliable sensitive block and a lower failure rate. Downside of the use of spinal anesthesia is a higher incidence of hypotension in the mother, which, however, is not a serious complication if treated adequately. Regarding the continuous application of local anesthetics via a spinal catheter, no definite statements towards benefits compared to other regional techniques can be made due to the lack of adequate amount of patient studies. Theoretically this method seems advantageous as it allows to adjust the administration of local anesthetics and opioids to the individual needs in a very refined way. Emergency situations, such as emergency cesarean sections, life threatening hemorrhage, eclampsia, and HELLP syndrome, are the main risks of the anesthetic practice in obstetrics. Their beneficial outcome is highly dependent on the coordination of logistic problems, good communication and coordination within an interdisciplinary team of obstetricians and anesthesiologists.

Analgesia, Obstetrical↗
PubMed2000

The effect of obstetric resident gender on forceps delivery rate.

OBJECTIVE: This study was undertaken to examine the effect of obstetric resident physician gender on the forceps delivery rate. STUDY DESIGN: Analysis was based on >350,000 deliveries performed by >800 residents in obstetrics and gynecology throughout the United States from 1994 to 1998. A chi(2) analysis was performed on resident statistics from residency review committee report forms. RESULTS: The percentage of total deliveries performed with forceps during residency was significantly higher among male residents (P <. 0001), as was the percentage of vaginal deliveries performed with forceps during residency (P <.0001). The percentage of overall operative vaginal deliveries (vacuum plus forceps) was significantly higher for male residents (P <.0001); however, the percentage of vacuum deliveries did not vary according to gender of the resident when considered independently. CONCLUSION: These results strongly suggest that resident gender affects performance of forceps delivery.

Delivery, Obstetric↗
PubMed1981

Patterns of obstetrical care in hospitals.

This article examines the determinants of length of stay and ancillary service use for a single diagnostic category: normal delivery. Data for a systematic sample of 945 obstetrical admissions to 48 New England hospitals during 1969-70 are used to estimate a simultaneous equations model. The exogenous variables include socioeconomic and medical characteristics of the mother, medical condition of the newborn, type of labor and delivery, and hospital and physician characteristics. The important findings are threefold: First, evidence is found supportive of a simultaneous relationship between length of stay and ancillary services for normal deliveries. Second, the results show the importance of controlling for the performance of surgery, the presence of complications, the length of labor and the death of the baby in analyzing obstetrical utilization patterns. Third, holding maternal medical and socioeconomic factors constant, hospital size, teaching status, control and location, as well as physician mode of practice and relationship to the hospital, are important determinants of hospital use. It is concluded that the diagnostic-specific approach to utilization analysis is appropriate and useful. Only within such a narrowed focus can researchers disentangle the confounding effects of the attributes of the disease itself from the impact of hospital and physician characteristics on hospital use.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

Obstetrics through the retrospectroscope.

This essay is a personal comparison of obstetrics in the 1930s and the 1970s. Maternal and perinatal mortality are contrasted for the two eras. Hospital delivery then and now, and hospital versus home delivery are compared. Changing patterns of operative delivery are presented with special reference to the increasing incidence of cesarean section. Continuing medical education and electronic fetal monitoring are discussed. The use of drugs during pregnancy, labor, and delivery is considered. Governmental and public intervention in obstetrics is lamented.

Delivery, Obstetric↗
PubMed2006

Risk factors for obstetric anal sphincter injury: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Anal incontinence is an embarrassing condition that is largely underreported. Obstetric anal sphincter injuries are the major etiological factor. Recognition of risk factors may minimize the development of sphincter injuries. The objective of this study was to identify risk factors for sphincter injuries and measure dimensions of mediolateral episiotomies. METHODS: Women expecting their first vaginal delivery were invited to participate, and an experienced research fellow performed a perineal and rectal examination and classified tears according to the new international classification. Dimensions of episiotomies were measured and obstetric variables recorded prospectively. RESULTS: Of the 241 women recruited, 59 (25%) sustained sphincter injuries. Univariate analysis revealed that forceps delivery OR 4.03 (1.63-9.92), vacuum extraction OR 2.64 (1.25-5.54), gestation > 40 weeks OR 3.18 (2.35-4.29), and mediolateral episiotomy OR 5.0 (2.64-9.44) were associated with these injuries. In addition, compared with women who had no injuries, sphincter injuries were more common with higher birthweight (3.51 vs 3.17 kg, p < 0.01), larger head circumference (34.3 vs 33.3 cm, p < 0.01), and longer second stage of labor (76 vs 51 min, p < 0.01). Multiple logistic regression revealed higher birthweight and mediolateral episiotomy OR 4.04 (1.71-9.56) as independent risk factors. Episiotomies angled closer to the midline were significantly associated with such injuries (26 vs 37 degrees, p = 0.01). No midwife and only 13 (22%) doctors performed truly mediolateral episiotomies. CONCLUSIONS: Mediolateral episiotomy is an independent risk factor for anal sphincter injuries. Although a liberal policy of mediolateral episiotomy does not appear to reduce the risk of such injuries, it may be related to inappropriate technique. A concerted approach to educate trainees in appropriate episiotomy technique and identification of sphincter injuries is imperative to enable reexamination of the true merits or disadvantages of mediolateral episiotomy.

Anal Canal↗
PubMed1989

Mothers', midwives' and obstetricians' views on the features of obstetric care which influence satisfaction with childbirth.

A sample of 15 women was interviewed 18-96 h postnatally to identify objective features of labour and postnatal care about which they expressed preferences. The importance of each item to a mother's satisfaction was then rated by a sample of 224 similar women. The same questionnaire was also completed by 28 midwives and 52 obstetricians. The items rated most important concerned the explanation of procedures and the involvement of mothers in administering or choosing them. Second was support from the presence of a partner and qualified hospital staff, third the physical comfort of the postnatal ward. The avoidance of obstetric interventions, such as episiotomy or use of forceps, was less important than the presence of these other features. The mean ranking given to each item by the midwives and obstetricians correlated very highly with that given by the mothers; those caring for obstetric patients are much more sensitive to their preferences than is popularly believed. There was no evidence that midwives perceived patients' needs more accurately than did the obstetricians. Discrepancies between the three groups' ranking of specific items may reflect the defence of their respective roles by each profession.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Careprovider and obstetrical interventions--a comparative study of four European countries.

The purpose of this study was to compare the treatment recommendations of obstetricians and midwives in four European countries: the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, and Slovenia. Intervention orientation was examined with six hypothetical patient cases. We wanted to learn whether midwives differ from obstetricians in their choices, and whether there is any variation among countries regarding the willingness of staff to intervene. In Finland the two professions were quite similar in their recommendations for interventions, but in Hungary and Slovenia, midwives and obstetricians differed from each other. There were also differences between the countries in the treatment recommendations, and there was disparity between opinions and actual obstetrical practices. Slovenian obstetrical staff were the most interventionistic in many cases, compared with others, although the actual frequency of interventions was no greater than in other countries. In Finland the staff were the most passive in their opinions, yet the actual proportion of interventions was greatest.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[Obstetric anesthesia/analgesia in Spain. Study notes on its historical evolution during the 1st half of this century].

This historical review of obstetric analgesia-anesthesia in Spain covers the first half of the twentieth century. Following usual practice for researching medical history, we have performed an exhaustive review of Spanish medical literature published during the study period, followed by classification, study and critical analysis. We found that the first half of the century saw considerable change in the application of analgesic-anesthetic techniques for childbirth and obstetric procedures, indicating that practitioners were far from apathetic as had been obstetricians of the second half of the nineteenth century, who generally rejected any type of analgesia for use during labor and birth. The numerous techniques in vogue during that period under study are described, although analgesia-anesthesia by inhaled ether and chloroform was undoubtedly the most widely used by obstetricians until well into the 1950's.

Analgesia, Obstetrical↗