PURPOSE to test a therapeutic approach using atosiban for tocolysis, evaluating its safety and maternal and fetal side effects. METHODS prospective study with 80 pregnant women with preterm labor admitted for tocolysis. INCLUSION CRITERIA singleton pregnancy, regular uterine activity, cervical dilatation between 1 to 3 cm, cervical enfacement greater than 50%, 23 to 33 weeks and six days of...

Cardiac toxicity of tocolysis containing hexoprenaline (0.3 microgram/min) and the beta 1-blocking agent metoprolol (0.01 mg/min) was investigated using a recently developed monoclonal antibody arised against light-chain myosin in 15 patients and compared with the results in 51 control subjects. There was an increase in the median and 80th percentile values 2, 6, 12 and 24 hours after the begin...

The objective of our study is to quantitatively examine the available evidence regarding the efficacy and side effects of magnesium sulfate for acute tocolysis (from randomized trials) compared with placebo and beta-agonist agents. Randomized trials comparing magnesium sulfate with placebo or beta-agonists for tocolysis were identified with a MEDLINE-based search and was supplemented by a searc...

BACKGROUND The use of tocolytic hospitalization in antenatal care is controversial and worthy of more research. We investigated individual, institutional, and area factors that affect the use of tocolytic hospitalizations in Taiwan where fertility has rapidly declined. METHODS Longitudinal data from the 1996 to 2004 National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan were used to identify t...

Thank you for asking us to comment on the issues raised by Professors Åkerlund and Mars̆ál. We would like to thank them for their interest and comments. We agree that in some cases of preterm labour, tocolysis is contraindicated. In particular, if there is significant fetal distress it would be unwise to delay delivery. Since preterm labour is multifactorial, there are a range of precipitating c...

BACKGROUND Subcutaneous terbutaline (SQ terbutaline) infusion by pump is used in pregnant women as a prolonged (beyond 48-72 h) maintenance tocolytic following acute treatment of preterm contractions. The effectiveness and safety of this maintenance tocolysis have not been clearly established. We aimed to systematically evaluate the effectiveness and safety of subcutaneous (SQ) terbutaline infu...

Approximately half of the more than 500,000 preterm births each year result from preterm labor. Tocolytic therapy continues to be the focus of treatment of these women. Although a variety of tocolytics are used in clinical practice, magnesium sulfate remains one of the most commonly used agents. Magnesium sulfate has also been the focus of recent research for its potential neuroprotective effec...

Uterine contractions occur in runs of 1-3/hr throughout pregnancy from early in the second trimester until full term usually without consequence. Regular uterine contractions are essential in every case of preterm labor (PTL) resulting in preterm delivery at <37 weeks. It has been demonstrated that women are unable to accurately perceive the contractions associated with preterm labor while uter...

OBJECTIVES To study the effect of ritodrine tocolysis on the success of external cephalic version (ECV) and to assess the role of ECV in breech presentation at our centre. MATERIAL AND METHODS A prospective randomized double-blind-controlled trial comparing ritodrine and placebo in ECV of singleton term breech pregnancy at a tertiary hospital. RESULTS Among the 60 patients who were recruite...