In normal pregnancy, your body produces oxytocin hormone which helps to initiate contractions, thinning of the cervix and preparing your body for childbirth. But in some cases due to medical reasons inducing artificial labor is needed for childbirth, called as LABOR INDUCTION. Your doctor will consider various factors like the health of your baby inside the womb, the position of your baby in the uterus, and the situation of your cervix before deciding to induce labor. In short, by considering the health of you and your baby, your doctor will decide whether labor induction is needed or not.
Let’s take a look at some of the general medical issues which may put your pregnancy at risk and need for labor induction:
- -When you pass the due date of childbirth i.e. after 40th week
- If your water breaks but you don’t feel any contractions
- Baby’s growth issue
- Health issues like gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, high blood pressure
- Uterine infection
- Rh disease
- Placental issue i.e. if it starts separating from uterus
- Oligohydramnios i.e. less amniotic fluid volume around baby
- If you had a still-birth in the past
DIFFERENT METHODS
After monitoring your condition, your doctor will decide which type of labor induction is best for you. There are various methods of labor induction, which are as follows:
Membrane Sweeping: Sweeping the membrane is one of the easiest and safest method to get your labor started which doesn’t need any medication but it’s a bit uncomfortable. In this method, your doctor rotate their (gloved) finger in your vagina to separate amniotic sac from the cervix. This movement helps to release prostaglandins hormone which is responsible for labor induction. This method doesn’t start your labor, it actually helps in the initial phase of labor (i.e when your cervix already starts opening).
In this procedure, you may feel cramps and bleeding for several days, while in some cases it can increase your chances of labor within 48hours. Immediately consult your doctor when your symptoms get severe. This method doesn’t work in all the situations, but it proves very effective when you pass your due date. One good point is you don’t need to be hospitalized for this process, it’s done just like regular checkup and can take only few minutes.
Artificial Water Break: This method is also called as “rupturing of the amniotic sac” or “amniotomy”. In this method, your doctor ruptures or makes a hole in the amniotic sac (i.e. bag of water) by inserting sterile plastic hook into your vagina to speed up labor. This process is not painful but need to be done very carefully. Make sure your cervix has started to thin and your baby’s head is deep in your pelvis before opting for this method of labor induction.
When your water gets broken artificially, you may feel like leaking (i.e. warm gush of fluid). You may take hours or days to go for labor after the rupturing of your amniotic sac. In case your baby’s head is not engaged, your baby is in an abnormal position and if the umbilical cord is trapped between the baby and the cervix, then this method should not be opted for labor. This process is highly effective if done very close to your due date but it also comes up with little risks like cord prolapse, infection, bleeding, and fetal distress.
Ripening The Cervix: In this method, a synthetic hormone called prostaglandins is used to soften or ripe the cervix to start labor. Prostaglandins can either taken orally or get inserted in the vagina for contractions and thinning of the cervix. After the use of prostaglandins, your doctor will closely monitor the heartbeat of your baby and your contractions. This method is more like natural labor. But it also has some risks i.e. some women may experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or vaginal soreness after the use of this hormone but chances are very less.
Another method to ripen the cervix is “Cervical ripening balloon catheter” i.e. a balloon (filled with saline liquid) with attached small tube (catheter) is inserted in the cervix to put pressure so that the cervix gets dilate. This method is not painful but the insertion of the catheter is little uncomfortable.
IV Drips: IV drips stands for intravenous drips in which the synthetic hormone called oxytocin (pitocin) is given through a drip in your arm to induce labor or make your contractions stronger and frequent. Intravenous medicines can also be used by inserting it in the vagina to induce labor. In this method, your doctor will closely monitor your contractions and your baby’s heart beat.
Oxytocin is very effective to speed up your labor but can make contractions more painful. Sometimes, your doctor needs to slow down the drip if your contractions are more frequent, as it may affect your baby’s heartbeat.
SIDE EFFECTS
After understanding the concept of labor induction which is safe in most of the cases, let’s take a look at the other side of this procedure i.e. side effects of inducing labor which are as follows:
- It’s not always effective and may end up in C-section delivery
- It may cause severe bleeding after delivery
- Sometimes severe contractions may cause lower heart rate of your baby
- If membrane ruptures for long then you are at high risk of infection
- It may cause lung problem in your baby
- It may cause uterine rupture
- It may cause hearing and vision problem in your baby
CONCLUSION
In most of the cases, labor induction will end up in successful vaginal delivery, but if it fails then you need a C-section for delivery. Labor inductions are suggested as near as possible to your due date. After labor induction, if you have a normal vaginal delivery then if doesn’t affect your future pregnancies. But if it ends up with a C-section, then either go for repeated C-sections or to attempt a normal vaginal delivery in the future.
If labor induction is processed before the 39th week due to some medical issue then it’s a good decision, but if there is no such reason then chances of complications are more and should be avoided. In normal cases, it’s always best to wait for labor to come on its own.