The latest evidence on oxytocin and birth: Sara Wickham looks at a review which helps explain why spontaneous, physiological labour and birth is beneficial.
Oxytocin and birth: the latest evidence
Category: Research Updates
Vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy
New data have changed the conclusions of the Cochrane review on vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy.
EFM: ubiquitous yet flawed
“EFM has become a quintessential example of the perils of adopting new medical technologies without proper study of risks and benefits,” says a Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Microbiome seeding and woman-centred care
Sara Wickham discusses a woman-centred and considered article on vaginal seeding, whose authors effectively highlight some of the complex but really important elements of this conversation.
Caseload midwifery continues to outperform standard maternity care
Research into women’s experiences of caseload midwifery care shows that this “outperforms standard care” for all women, even those perceived to have a higher chance of problems.
Another way of helping babies with shoulder dystocia?
A discussion of the shoulder shrug manoeuvre for resolving shoulder dystocia during birth.
Prophylactic antibiotics after instrumental birth?
A large randomised controlled trial looking at the effect of antibiotics to prevent infection after operative vaginal birth shows that this reduces the chance of infection from one in five to one in ten.
“EFM is a waste of extremely scarce resources…”
“EFM is a waste of extremely scarce resources while simultaneously adding another layer of useless staff training complexity as well as significant morbidity and mortality to a desperately critical situation.”
Recurrent episodes of reduced fetal movement and pregnancy risk
Research from the UK shows that, “Reduced fetal movements, and recurrent episodes, are common, and lead to considerable resource usage and obstetric intervention. We found no evidence to suggest that recurrent episodes increase pregnancy risk.”
Women’s experiences of birthing their placenta
Sara Wickham looks at research considering women’s experiences of birthing their placenta.