Indicators for intervention during the expulsive second-stage arrest of labour

Abstract

Objective: To identify antepartum and intrapartum indicators of obstetric interventions during the expulsive second-stage arrest of labour. Design: Retrospective cohort study. Setting: The Netherlands. Population: A cohort of 389 086 women with singleton, cephalic, term, live-birth deliveries from 2002 to 2004 who had entered the expulsive second stage of labour. Of all these deliveries, 37 899 (9.7%) were complicated by expulsive second-stage arrest of labour. Women with a prior Caesarean section or women undergoing an elective Caesarean section were excluded. Methods: All deliveries in the Netherlands from 2002 to 2004 were registered in the Netherlands Perinatal Registry, which contains the linked and validated data of three databases. Uni- and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed. Main outcome measures: Ante- and intrapartum indicators for interventions during expulsive second-stage arrest of labour. Results: Primiparous delivery was the most important antepartum indicator for intervention during expulsive second-stage arrest. Using multivariable analysis the following antepartum indicators were associated with intervention for expulsive second-stage arrest of primiparous labour: maternal age, gestational age, diabetes, hypertension and labour induction. Prominent intrapartum indicators for primiparous deliveries were fetal head position and oxytocin augmentation. Conclusion: Multiple significant antepartum and intrapartum indicators associated with intervention for expulsive second-stage arrest of labour were identified in this large retrospective study. Prominent were the associations of parity, maternal age and fetal head position with expulsive second-stage arrest. The identified factors should be further evaluated in prospective studies that aim to develop prediction models.