Inducing labor is quite common in childbirth even though the procedure usually causes a pregnant woman's painful labor to last longer. With this is mind, researchers looked for ways to induce a shorter labor that promises less pain for women who are about to give birth and it seems like they have found that method.
There are two ways on how to induce labor. The first involves using a pill, vaginal insert, or vaginal gel that gears up the cervix for induction by releasing synthetic hormones. The second method is carried out via a mechanical tool such as a balloon catheter, which is placed in the cervix and releases natural hormones, according to the NY Mag's The Cut.
Labor induction is usually safe but there are some risks depending on a woman's situation or the methods used by doctors. For instance, prostaglandins, which are inserted into the vagina, can cause placental abruption or uterine rupture. Those side effects, however, are extremely rare in women who didn't undergo C-section or uterine surgery, as per BabyCenter.
It should be noted that the two methods of labor induction have similar turnouts of C-section and both take time before its effects can be felt by the woman. Dr. Lisa D. Levine from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania said that she tried to "see if combining more than one method that's currently used could actually lead to a faster delivery."
For this endeavor, Dr. Levine and her colleagues used a balloon catheter called the Foley catheter together with a prostaglandin drug called misoprostol. Their study published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology found that combining these two methods cuts a woman's labor time by four hours. The women gave birth within 13 hours instead of the typical 17 hours or more with only one method used.
Levine said that shorter labor means less pain for mothers undergoing childbirth. She added that the procedure can also benefit the healthcare system because it shortens a woman's time spent in the hospital.
A variety of factors prohibits induced labor and call for a C-section instead. A woman shouldn't give birth vaginally with induced labor if she has an active genital herpes infection; if she's having twins, triplets, or more; if the baby is in a breech or traverse position; if the baby can't endure contractions or it needs to be delivered immediately; and if the mother has placenta previa (low placement of the placenta in the uterus), BabyCenter listed.
