The purpose of this thesis was to develop best practice recommendations to care for women in the second stage of labor. Evidence suggests that care of women during the second stage of labor using upright positioning, delayed pushing, application of warm compresses to the perineum, and perineal massage can improve maternal and neonatal outcomes (Aasheim et al., 2011; Brancato et al., 2008; Chang...

Fetal Heart Rate (FHR) is clinically used for early detection of fetal acidosis. Despite a marked interest in automatic detection procedures, FHR analysis remains a challenging signal processing task, receiving considerable research attention. Among other difficulties, the two stages of labor (dilation and active pushing) produce very different FHR dynamics. Most research efforts, however, have...

OBJECTIVE To examine the relationship between prolonged second stage and postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). METHODS We conducted a retrospective case-control study of all cases of PPH which occurred at four Southern California hospitals in 2003. Cases were identified by ICD-9 codes and confirmed by chart reviews, and non-cases were randomly selected as controls. The relationship between PPH and pro...

OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of pregnancy and vaginal delivery on the pelvic floor and levatorani morphology and function. METHODS Design. Cross-sectional study. Setting. Tertiary care teaching hospital. Population. 75 primigravid women were recruited for assessment at 6 weeks postpartum compared with 25 nulliparous women. Hiatal morphology and levator ani muscle avulsion were assessed b...

OBJECTIVE To review obstetric practice in a single maternity hospital with respect to the assisted vaginal delivery rate. METHOD A retrospective analysis of the hospital statistics, labor ward records, casenotes and management protocols with respect to the second stage of labor was performed in a single maternity unit in the UK; the study included 43352 women who delivered a baby between the ...

This case report illustrates an unusual occurrence during the second stage of labor. After appropriate evaluation for life-threatening causes, a psychiatric process must be considered. Although our patient refused further psychological evaluation, we believe that she exhibited a trancelike state during the second stage of labor and suffered from amnesia in which one awakens to the current situa...

AIM This study aimed to investigate ST waveform analysis (STAN) signal quality during the second stage of labor by comparing signal quality in the first and second stages of labor. METHODS Fifty women who delivered vaginally were randomly selected in a large prospective database including all women with STAN monitoring during labor. Quality signal was analyzed during the second stage of labor...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether the obstetric gel shortens the second stage of labor and exerts a protective effect on the perineum. METHOD A total of 251 nulliparous women with singleton low-risk pregnancies in vertex position at term were recruited. A total of 228 eligible women were randomly assigned to Group A, without obstetric gel use, or to Group B, obstetric gel use, i.e., intermittent...