Babies born at or after 39 weeks have the best chance at healthy outcomes compared with babies born before 39 weeks. When the health of a woman or her fetus is at risk, induction before 39 weeks may be recommended. Your hospital may offer induction at 39 weeks if it has the staff and resources to do so.
If your hospital offers this option, your ob-gyn or other health care professional will coordinate your care with hospital staff. You might consider induction at 39 weeks to reduce the risk of certain health problems.
Healthy women whose labor is induced at 39 weeks may have lower rates of preeclampsia and gestational hypertension than women who do not have induction at 39 weeks. There are several methods to start labor if it has not started naturally. The ways to start labor may include the following:. Ripening the cervix is a procedure that helps the cervix soften and thin out so that it will dilate open during labor.
Before inducing labor, your ob-gyn or other health care professional may check to see if your cervix is ready using the Bishop score. With this scoring system, a number ranging from 0 to 13 is given to rate the condition of the cervix. A score of 6 or less means that your cervix is not yet ready for labor. If the cervix is not ready, ripening may be done.
Using medications that contain prostaglandins. These drugs can be inserted into the vagina or taken by mouth. Using a thin tube that has an inflatable balloon on the end. The tube is inserted into the cervix and then expanded. This helps widen the cervix. Your doctor will discuss all of these options with you. Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.
Induced labour can be started in several ways. Your doctor will discuss with you what your options are as well as any possible risks to you or your baby. Inducing labour allows women to deliver their baby normally by stimulating labour contractions. There are several medical and surgical techniques which can be used. Read more on Parenthub website. Read more on Better Health Channel website. A stretch and sweep or membrane sweep is a relatively gentle way of trying to start labour.
Pregnancy normally lasts about 40 weeks or around days from the first day of your last period, however some women go overdue. Read about the different types of intervention.
Learn more about labour complications. It is a medical emergency that requires immediate intervention. Find out why here. Every labour and birth is unique and unpredictable, making it difficult to plan. It is common for women to feel some level of anxiety during pregnancy; perhaps about their changing body, the health of their baby or concerns about the birth. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby is not responsible for the content and advertising on the external website you are now entering.
Video call. This information is for your general information and use only and is not intended to be used as medical advice and should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any medical condition, nor should it be used for therapeutic purposes. The information is not a substitute for independent professional advice and should not be used as an alternative to professional health care.
If you have a particular medical problem, please consult a healthcare professional. So while many women are offered induction at 41 weeks, time limits for induction do vary between different hospitals Middleton et al, Induction of labour may carry risks for mums, especially if they are not ready to labour.
Risks might be finding labour more painful and possibly a higher risk of having an assisted vaginal birth NICE, a; Middleton et al, One study found that more women who had a vaginal birth needed operative assistance at 40 weeks compared with at 39 weeks Caughey et al, A birth at 40 weeks is also more likely to cause third or fourth degree perineal tears and infection of the fetal membranes chorioamnionitis than at 39 weeks Caughey et al, Your baby being overdue raises the risks for them.
Most researchers agree that there are more stillbirths as pregnancy goes past its due date RCM, ; Decker, Babies who are very overdue are at higher risk of suffering from health problems and are at an increased risk of dying Hilder et al, ; RCM, For example, a healthy first-time mum who wants an unmedicated birth might feel strongly that she wants a spontaneous labour.
At the same time, it may be very important to a mum who has experienced miscarriages in the past to lower the risk of stillbirth by any means necessary. Your midwife or obstetrician should explain why you are being offered an induction and explain the risks, benefits and alternatives.
They should also encourage you to look at information about it and discuss your decision with your partner or family. Midwives or obstetricians should support you in whatever decision you make NICE, a. A large study compared inducing labour to waiting for it to start naturally and it found that inducing labour meant:.
Some critics have said that a few of the trials analysed in that study were old or could be biased Middleton et al, ; Wickham, Severe side effects of induction drugs such as prostaglandins are uncommon. But general side effects can include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, headaches uncommon and small blood clots rare NICE, NDa. In Canada, the recommendations are different and have not changed, despite the study.
Inductions are also done for many other medical reasons before 41 weeks. Still, inductions elicit mixed feelings from both parents and care providers. They pointed to higher C-section rates in the province compared with the US hospitals studied, the young age of study participants the median age was 23, which is about seven years younger than the average first-time mother in Canada , and the fact that 73 percent of eligible birthing parents declined to participate in the study—all factors that may have influenced positive outcomes.
Ultimately, the timing of your labour and your decision to induce or not depend on so many factors, including risks to baby and mother, personal values and preferences, and what your care provider and provincial practice setting can accommodate. But Selk is always happy to have the conversation with her patients.
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