Sara Wickham looks at research showing the gap between gap between what women need and want and the reality of what they experience when undergoing induction of labour.
Induction of labour: the gap between theory and reality
Tag: induction
Routine early induction in healthy women not supported by evidence
A systematic review has concluded that induction prior to post-term is associated with few beneficial outcomes and several adverse outcomes.
Review shows that “evidence is lacking” to induce labour before 42 weeks of pregnancy
A review of trials comparing induction of labour with expectant management has concluded that evidence is lacking for the recommendation to induce labour at 41 weeks instead of 42 weeks for the improvement of perinatal outcome.
Ten things I wish every woman knew about induction of labour: the article
In modern Western culture, most women know about induction of labour before they even become pregnant. They know that it is suggested when it is felt that it would be safer for the baby to be born than to stay…
Inducing Labour: making informed decisions – now available!
I am so happy to be able to announce the launch of the revised and updated second edition of Inducing Labour: making informed decisions, a book which helps parents, professionals and others to understand the process and the evidence relating…
Book and instagram news!
I have two pieces of news to share today! First, a new, shiny, updated version of my book Inducing Labour: making informed decisions launched on Thursday, 10th May! The new version includes discussion of new research, practice-related issues and thinking…
Post-term pregnancy and induction of labour resources
The subjects of ‘post-term’ pregnancy and induction of labour have been close to my heart for a long while, and were the topic of my PhD thesis (2008). This post lists all of the resources on this topic that are…
Castor oil for labour induction
A study has looked at birthing outcomes of 323 women who used castor oil as part of an attempt to induce their labour, with interesting results. The study was carried out in the US where, in contrast to countries like…
Induction and synchronised swimming…
I love it when people remind me of brilliant ideas and analogies that I had forgotten. A couple of weeks ago, one of my post-term pregnancy online course participants reminded me of the wonderful and well-loved midwife Mary Cronk’s analogy…
More evidence that (and why) induction leads to more caesareans
Two more research studies have added to the concern that women who undergo induction of labour are more likely to end up with a caesarean section than if their labour began naturally. The first, an analysis of the outcomes of…