Hiring a midwife to help with pregnancy can give better birth outcomes, researchers say.
The study published in The Cochrane Library, Tuesday reported that women who received exclusive maternity care from midwives during pregnancy, than a combination of doctors and midwives, had lesser complications.
Lead researcher Jane Sandall from the King's College in London and colleagues looked at 16,242 women, part of 13 previous trials. The studies covered women who were both at high (five trials) and low risk (eight trials) of various complications. Their birth outcomes were then compared depending on the care received by midwives or a combo of obstetricians, midwives and other health professionals.
Findings showed that midwife care throughout pregnancy avoided premature birth, epidurals, assisted births, episiotomy (an opening made in the perineum, i.e. the area between vagina and anus, to speed up birth and avoid risk of a tear) and C-section.
Finding the added benefits associated with the constant assistance of a midwife during pregnancy, the authors urged women without any major complications to always seek the support of a midwife after conceiving until birth.
"Women should be encouraged to ask for this option," Sandall, said in a news release. "Policymakers in areas of the world where health systems do not provide midwife-led care should consider the importance of midwives in improving maternity care and how financing of midwife-led services can be reviewed to support this."
Apart from that, midwife care was also found to be more cost-effective than sharing maternity care with various health professionals.
The findings have received wide support from health experts.
"Every woman should be aware of the benefits of midwifery-led care compared to obstetrician- or family physician-led care," Maureen Corry, executive director of Childbirth Connection, a national nonprofit focused on maternal care, toldHuffington Post. "This new Cochrane review is full of good news news for women and babies."
