“Plenty of IV Fluids May Make Childbirth Safer, Easier,” enthuses the Philadelphia Inquirer, over a systematic review (a “study of studies” on a particular topic) finding that infusing IV fluids at 250 mL per hour instead of the usual 125 resulted in shorter labors...
Systematic Review Finds Eating and Drinking in Labor to Be Benign
A Lamaze International internal e-newsletter points us to a new systematic review, meaning a study of studies on a particular issue, of nutritive oral intake vs. ice chips or water alone. In the interest of full disclosure, the review has its weaknesses, but...
ACOG Endorses Optimal Care—Sort Of
Abstract: Obstetrician-gynecologists . . . can help women meet their goals for labor and birth by using techniques that are associated with minimal interventions and high rates of patient satisfaction. Many common obstetric practices are of limited or uncertain...
Clinical Guidelines Endorse Physiologic Care in Labor
The Lancet has devoted an issue to maternal health that includes a systematic review of maternity care practice guidelines entitled: “Beyond too little, too late and too much, too soon: a pathway towards evidence-based, respectful maternity care worldwide.” It joins a...
ASA Moves Toward Supporting Eating in Labor
A Giving Birth with Confidence post discusses a press release put out by the American Society of Anesthesiologists entitled "Most Healthy Women Would Benefit from Light Meal During Labor." Yes, you read that correctly. The press release summarizes a literature review...
A Lot to Like in Updated U.K. Labor Care Guidelines
Many recommendations in "Intrapartum care: care of healthy women & their babies during childbirth," the latest version of National Institute for Health & Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, support what advocates for physiologic care have long been saying about...