Breech vaginal delivery at or near term

Mechanics of vaginal breech birth: Factors influencing obstetric maneuver rate, duration of active second stage of labor, and neonatal outcome

BACKGROUND

We investigated possible parameters that could predict the need for obstetric maneuvers, the duration of the active second stage of labor (i.e., the duration of active pushing), and short-term neonatal outcome in vaginal breech births.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We performed a retrospective analysis of 268 successful singleton vaginal breech births in women without previous vaginal births from January 2015 to August 2022. Multivariable regression was used to investigate associations between maternal and fetal characteristics (including antepartum magnetic resonance (MR) pelvimetry) with obstetric maneuvers, the duration of active second stage of labor, pH values, and admission to the neonatal unit. Models for the prediction of obstetric maneuvers were built and internally validated.

RESULTS

Obstetric maneuvers were performed in a total of 130 women (48.5%). A total of 32 neonates (11.9%) had to be admitted to the neonatal unit. The intertuberous distance (ITD) (p < 0.001), epidural analgesia (p < 0.001), and birthweight (p = 0.026) were associated with the duration of active second stage of labor. ITD (p = 0.028) and birthweight (p = 0.011) were also independently associated with admission to the neonatal unit, while pH values below 7.10 dropped significantly (p = 0.0034) if ITD was ≥13 cm. Furthermore, ITD (p < 0.001) and biparietal diameter (p = 0.002) were independent predictors for obstetric maneuvers.

CONCLUSIONS

ITD is independently associated with the duration of active second stage of labor. Thus, it can predict suboptimal birth mechanics in the last stage of birth, which may lead to the need for obstetric maneuvers, lower arterial pH values, and admission to the neonatal unit. Consequently, MR pelvimetry gives additional information for practitioners and birthing people preferring a vaginal breech birth.

Footling Breech Delivery in an Emergency Department Without Obstetrical Services: A Case Report

Hospitals without formal obstetric services place the emergency physician in the position of managing potentially complicated precipitous labor and delivery such as breech presentations. Breech deliveries pose an increased risk of significant morbidity and mortality to both the mother and fetus. Recent emphasis on cesarean section as the optimal delivery method for breech presentation has decreased education and comfort levels with breech vaginal deliveries. This case study highlights a patient who presented to a suburban emergency department (ED) in active labor with a footling breech presentation. No obstetrical services were available. The delivery was successful, and the neonate was resuscitated. Though emergency medicine residents receive training in standard vaginal deliveries, most residents do not receive firsthand experience with difficult deliveries. This case highlights the need for policy and procedure and annual competency training for physicians and allied staff in ED facilities without obstetrical services. Structured protocols and annual simulation training will improve outcomes for imminent deliveries with potential complications.

The Impact of Mode of Birth, and Episiotomy, on Postpartum Sexual Function in the Medium- and Longer-Term: An Integrative Systematic Review

(1) Background: Sexual function can be affected up to and beyond 18 months postpartum, with some studies suggesting that spontaneous vaginal birth results in less sexual dysfunction. This review examined the impact of mode of birth on sexual function in the medium- (≥6 months and <12 months postpartum) and longer-term (≥12 months postpartum). (2) Methods: Literature published after January 2000 were identified in PubMed, Embase and CINAHL. Studies that compared at least two modes of birth and used valid sexual function measures were included. Systematic reviews, unpublished articles, protocols and articles not written in English were excluded. Quality was assessed using the Newcastle Ottawa Scale. (3) Results: In the medium-term, assisted vaginal birth and vaginal birth with episiotomy were associated with worse sexual function, compared to caesarean section. In the longer-term, assisted vaginal birth was associated with worse sexual function, compared with spontaneous vaginal birth and caesarean section; and planned caesarean section was associated with worse sexual function in several domains, compared to spontaneous vaginal birth. (4) Conclusions: Sexual function, in the medium- and longer-term, can be affected by mode of birth. Women should be encouraged to seek support should their sexual function be affected after birth.

What to do when it is breech? A state-of-the-art review on management of breech presentation

Any non-cephalic presentation in a fetus is regarded as malpresentation. The most common malpresentation, breech, contributes to 3%-5% of term pregnancies and is a leading indication for cesarean delivery. Identification of risk factors and a proper physical examination are beneficial; however, ultrasound is the gold standard for the diagnosis of malpresentations. External cephalic version (ECV) refers to a procedure aimed to convert a non-cephalic presenting fetus to cephalic presentation. This procedure is performed manually through the mother’s abdomen by a trained health care provider, to reduce the likelihood of a cesarean section. Studies have reported a version success rate of above 50% by ECV. The main objective of this review is to present a broad perspective on fetal malpresentation, ECV, and delivery of a breech fetus. The focus is to elaborate all clinical scenarios of breech and to provide an evidence-based clinical approach for them. After discussing breech prevalence, risk factors, diagnosis, and management, an updated review of ECV is presented. Moreover, ECV indications/contraindications, alternatives, clinical techniques on how to perform ECV and breech vaginal delivery, and obstetrical considerations for the delivery of malpresentations are thoroughly discussed.

Neonatal admission rate after vaginal breech delivery

OBJECTIVES

The safest mode of delivery for fetuses in breech presentations is still an ongoing debate. The aim of this study was to analyze neonatal admission rates after vaginal breech delivery and compare it to other modes of delivery in order to counsel pregnant women with breech presentation adequately.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective monocentric analysis of all deliveries with singleton pregnancies in breech presentation > 36.0 weeks of gestation between 01/2018-12/2019. Short-term neonatal morbidity data was collected for vaginal delivery and primary as well as secondary cesarean sections from breech presentations.

RESULTS

A total of n=41/482 (8.5%) neonates had to be admitted to NICU: vaginal breech delivery n=18/153 (11.8%), primary cesarean section n=9/101 (8.9%, OR 0.73; CI 0.32-1.70; p=0.47), secondary cesarean section n=10/76 (13.2%, OR 1.14; CI 0.50-2.60, p=0.76) and vaginal vertex delivery n=4/152 (2.6%, OR 0.20; CI 0.06-0.51; p=0.005). There was no significant difference in transfer to NICU between all breech position delivery modes. Despite significantly lower pH and 5' APGAR values after vaginal delivery, neonates delivered by primary cesarean section and NICU admission had to be treated there significantly longer (mean 80.9 vs. 174.0 h). No significant difference in terms of ventilation parameters and infections were found between the vaginal delivery, primary and secondary cesarean section from breech presentation.

CONCLUSIONS

Vaginal breech delivery does not result in a higher neonatal admission rate in comparison to primary and secondary section. In contrast, there is a shorter NICU duration in case of neonatal admission after vaginal delivery.

Screening for breech presentation using universal late-pregnancy ultrasonography: A prospective cohort study and cost effectiveness analysis

BACKGROUND

Despite the relative ease with which breech presentation can be identified through ultrasound screening, the assessment of foetal presentation at term is often based on clinical examination only. Due to limitations in this approach, many women present in labour with an undiagnosed breech presentation, with increased risk of foetal morbidity and mortality. This study sought to determine the cost effectiveness of universal ultrasound scanning for breech presentation near term (36 weeks of gestational age [wkGA]) in nulliparous women.

METHODS AND FINDINGS

The Pregnancy Outcome Prediction (POP) study was a prospective cohort study between January 14, 2008 and July 31, 2012, including 3,879 nulliparous women who attended for a research screening ultrasound examination at 36 wkGA. Foetal presentation was assessed and compared for the groups with and without a clinically indicated ultrasound. Where breech presentation was detected, an external cephalic version (ECV) was routinely offered. If the ECV was unsuccessful or not performed, the women were offered either planned cesarean section at 39 weeks or attempted vaginal breech delivery. To compare the likelihood of different mode of deliveries and associated long-term health outcomes for universal ultrasound to current practice, a probabilistic economic simulation model was constructed. Parameter values were obtained from the POP study, and costs were mainly obtained from the English National Health Service (NHS). One hundred seventy-nine out of 3,879 women (4.6%) were diagnosed with breech presentation at 36 weeks. For most women (96), there had been no prior suspicion of noncephalic presentation. ECV was attempted for 84 (46.9%) women and was successful in 12 (success rate: 14.3%). Overall, 19 of the 179 women delivered vaginally (10.6%), 110 delivered by elective cesarean section (ELCS) (61.5%) and 50 delivered by emergency cesarean section (EMCS) (27.9%). There were no women with undiagnosed breech presentation in labour in the entire cohort. On average, 40 scans were needed per detection of a previously undiagnosed breech presentation. The economic analysis indicated that, compared to current practice, universal late-pregnancy ultrasound would identify around 14,826 otherwise undiagnosed breech presentations across England annually. It would also reduce EMCS and vaginal breech deliveries by 0.7 and 1.0 percentage points, respectively: around 4,196 and 6,061 deliveries across England annually. Universal ultrasound would also prevent 7.89 neonatal mortalities annually. The strategy would be cost effective if foetal presentation could be assessed for £19.80 or less per woman. Limitations to this study included that foetal presentation was revealed to all women and that the health economic analysis may be altered by parity.

CONCLUSIONS

According to our estimates, universal late pregnancy ultrasound in nulliparous women (1) would virtually eliminate undiagnosed breech presentation, (2) would be expected to reduce foetal mortality in breech presentation, and (3) would be cost effective if foetal presentation could be assessed for less than £19.80 per woman.

Risk factors for emergency caesarean section in planned vaginal breech delivery

PURPOSE

To identify risk factors for emergency caesarean section in women attempting a vaginal breech delivery at term.

METHODS

Data from 1092 breech deliveries performed between 1998 and 2013 at a Swiss cantonal hospital were extracted from an electronic database. Of the 866 women with a singleton, full term pregnancy, 464 planned a vaginal breech delivery. Fifty-seven percent (265/464) were successful in delivering vaginally. Multivariate regression analyses of risk factors were performed, and neonatal and maternal complications were compared.

RESULTS

Risk factors for failed vaginal delivery were peridural anaesthesia (OR 2.05; 95 % CI 1.09-3.84; p = 0.025), nulliparity (OR 2.82; 95 % CI 1.87-4.25; p < 0.001), high birth weight (OR 1.17; 95 % CI 1.04-1.30; p = 0.006) and induction of labour (OR 1.56; 95 % CI 1.003-2.44; p = 0.048). Maternal age, height and weight; gestational age; or newborn length and head circumference were not associated with an unplanned caesarean section. The rate of successful vaginal delivery in the low risk sub-group (multiparous women without induction of labour) was 58-83 %, depending on birth weight category. The likelihood of success for the high risk sub-group (nulliparous women with induction of labour) fell below a third at neonatal birth weights >3250 g. Complication rates were low in the cohort.

CONCLUSIONS

Use of peridural anaesthesia, nulliparity, high birth weight and induction of labour were risk factors for unsuccessful vaginal breech delivery requiring an unplanned caesarean section. Awareness of these risk factors is useful when counselling women who are considering a vaginal breech delivery.

Breech repositioning unresponsive to Webster technique: coexistence of oligohydramnios

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this report is to describe the results of a pregnant woman demonstrating breech fetal presentation who was managed with Webster technique in the presence of oligohydramnios.

CLINICAL FEATURES

A 23-year-old primigravida woman sought chiropractic care for the management of breech presentation and bilateral sacroiliac arthralgia at 34 weeks' gestation.

INTERVENTION AND OUTCOME

Sacral manipulation and abdominal effleurage (Webster Technique) was used to address breech presentation and sacroiliac arthralgia for a total of 7 treatments over a 3 1/2-week duration. The patient's sacroiliac pain reduced from 8/10 to 3/10. However, breech presentation was unchanged at each treatment. At a scheduled prenatal surveillance during the 37th week of gestation, the midwife detected vaginal bleeding and reduced fundal height, which resulted in hospitalization, diagnosis of oligohydramnios, and an emergency cesarean delivery.

CONCLUSION

For this particular patient, the breech presentation was not corrected using the Webster technique. Clinicians who use the Webster technique to manage breech fetal presentation should be aware of undiagnosed comorbidities as a complicating factor in clinical presentation. Screening for previously undiagnosed comorbidities, such as oligohydramnios, must be considered.

[Breech presentation at term: caesarean section or vaginal delivery?]

INTRODUCTION

Term breech presentation occurs in 3-4% of all deliveries. Most obstetricians are completely sure how to end delivery when the foetus is in breech presentation, by caesarean section as the only option.

OBJECTIVE

The main goal of the paper was to present the method of delivery for term breech presentation analyzed at the Hospital of Gynaecology and Obstetrics and Clinical Centre in Kragujevac, and parameters that influenced the decision on the method of choice to perform delivery with the foetus in breech position.

METHODS

During a three-year prospective study, the course and outcome of all term breech deliveries were under followup. The study involved only deliveries in breech presentation, with a trial of labour ending by vaginal delivery, while elective caesarean section due to breech presentation of the foetus was not included in the study. The following parameters were compared: body mass, newborn's first minute Apgar score and head circumference, gestational maturity, gestational age, delivery duration, maternal level of education and maternal parity.

RESULTS

Of total 6,470 deliveries, 653 (10.10%) were finalized by caesarean section. Of these, there were 202 (3.12%) term breech presentations, of which 72 (35.64%) women had caesarean and 130 (64.36%) vaginal delivery. A difference was detected in newborn's body mass and head circumference, delivery duration, maternal level of education and parity between pregnancies terminated surgically in comparison to vaginal delivery, while pregnancy duration, maternal age, first minute Apgar score, and most significantly, perinatal morbidity did not show any difference regardless of the method of delivery for term breech presentation.

CONCLUSION

With respect of all known parameters, vaginal delivery in breech presentation is also accepted.

Tailoring systematic reviews to meet critical priorities in maternal health in the intrapartum period

Health care practitioners and researchers commonly call for greater reliance on evidence as a means to achieve improvement in quality of care. Systematic reviews provide a means to accelerate the use of evidence-based clinical interventions and public health practices. The extent to which these time- and resource-intensive systematic reviews currently address critical maternal health priorities in the intrapartum period is unclear. This analysis summarises key maternal health and research priorities, maps these priorities to existing reviews, identifies gaps in the literature that can be addressed with systematic reviews, and highlights key methodological concerns in conducting systematic reviews. The analysis draws on published data on maternal morbidities and an overview of 108 systematic reviews in Medline in the past 5 years using the MeSH terms 'Delivery, Obstetric,' to draw the links between health priorities, research priorities, existing evidence and missing evidence. Key causes of morbidity during labour and delivery in the United States include haemorrhage, pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, obstetric trauma and infection. Analyses of maternal morbidity and mortality suggest that key concerns include racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes and the prevention of adverse events. Systematic reviews, however, generally tend to focus on the reduction of harms associated with interventions, are frequently limited to randomised designs, and do not address issues of health disparities. The results suggest that advances in evidence-based care in maternal health require that systematic reviews address issues of prevention of adverse events, include a larger variety of study designs when necessary and pay closer attention to health disparities.

Trial of Vaginal Breech Delivery: Current Role

Breech presentation occurs at term in approximately 3% to 4% of singleton gestations. This presentation is associated with a variety of maternal and fetal conditions including preterm labor, abnormal amniotic fluid volume, hydrocephaly, anencephaly, mullerian anomalies, abnormal placentation, and multifetal gestation. Cesarean delivery has been associated with increased risk of subsequent accreta, placenta previa, hemorrhage, and hysterectomy. The Term Breech Trial initially suggested that planned vaginal breech delivery is associated with increased neonatal morbidity and mortality compared with planned cesarean delivery. Long-term follow-up of these vaginally delivered infants contradict the initial findings. Current debate surrounds the dilemma of whether the untoward complications of cesarean delivery are warranted given uncertain minimal increases in neonatal survival and improvement in neurologic outcome with planned cesarean.

Patient-choice vaginal delivery?

Patient-choice cesarean delivery is increasing in the United States. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists supports this option, citing ethical premises of autonomy and informed consent, despite a lack of evidence for its safety. This increase in patient-choice cesarean delivery occurs during a time when women with a breech-presenting fetus or a previous cesarean section have fewer choices as to vaginal birth. Patient-choice cesarean delivery may become widely disseminated before the potential risks to women and their children have been well analyzed. The growing pressure for cesarean delivery in the absence of a medical indication may ultimately result in a decrease of women's childbirth options. Advocacy of patient-choice requires preserving vaginal birth options as well as cesarean delivery.

Assisted vaginal delivery versus caesarean section in breech presentation

BACKGROUND

The Term Breech Trial (TBT), a well-known study conducted by Hannah and published in the Lancet, revealed a better outcome for neonates after primary caesarean section compared with attempted vaginal delivery. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the results of TBT have to be taken into account when counseling pregnant women in central Europe.

METHODS

We investigated 882 women who had delivered infants in breech presentation over a period of 11 years. The neonates had a birthweight of >2500 g and no malformations. We compared mortality and serious neonatal morbidity after attempted vaginal delivery and after primary caesarean section.

RESULTS

No infant or maternal mortality was registered in either group. Serious neonatal morbidity was higher (0.5%; n = 2) for attempted vaginal delivery than for primary caesarean section; in the latter group, no child fulfilled the criteria for serious neonatal morbidity. However, the difference was not statistically significant. As expected, after attempted vaginal delivery, the base excess, and 5-min APGAR scores were indicative of more markedly depressed children.

CONCLUSION

After careful exclusion of risk factors and informing the patient in detail about the risks and possible complications, vaginal delivery from breech presentation is still warrantable.

Term incomplete breech delivery in an ambulance: a case report

Breech deliveries are the most common form of fetal malpresentations and are associated with significant risk for morbidity and mortality to mother and infant. There is an increased chance that emergency physicians may encounter breech deliveries as more women with known breech presentations are given the option for a trial of labor in lieu of mandatory caesarean section. Emergency physicians should be prepared for the complications that are associated with breech delivery and recognize the different maneuvers required to successfully deliver a breech infant.

Factors associated with adverse perinatal outcome in the Term Breech Trial

BACKGROUND

In the Term Breech Trial, the risk of adverse perinatal outcome was lower with planned cesarean section versus planned vaginal birth. We undertook secondary analyses to determine factors associated with adverse perinatal outcome.

STUDY DESIGN

By using multiple logistic regression analyses, we determined the effect of prelabor cesarean section, cesarean section during early labor, cesarean section during active labor versus vaginal birth, and other factors, on adverse perinatal outcome. For 1384 fetuses delivered after labor, we determined the effect of variables associated with labor on adverse perinatal outcome.

RESULTS

The risk of adverse perinatal outcome was lowest with prelabor cesarean section (odds ratio [OR]=0.13) and highest with vaginal birth. For those delivered after labor, labor augmentation (P=.007), birth weight less than 2.8 kg (P=.003), and longer time between pushing and delivery (P<.001) increased the risk, whereas the presence of an experienced clinician at delivery (P=.004) reduced the risk of adverse perinatal outcome.

CONCLUSION

Breech infants at term are best delivered by prelabor cesarean section.