Clinical Research Directory

Integrated Intrapartum Supportive Care and Pushing Strategies in Women Receiving Low-Dose Epidural Analgesia

This prospective, three-arm, non-randomized quasi-experimental study aims to evaluate integrated intrapartum supportive care combined with different pushing strategies among women at 37-42 weeks of gestation who receive low-dose epidural analgesia. Participants receive integrated intrapartum supportive care combined with spontaneous pushing, integrated intrapartum supportive care combined with immediate pushing, or routine intrapartum care combined with immediate pushing. The primary outcomes are the durations of the first and second stages of labor. Secondary outcomes include mode of birth, obstetric interventions, maternal outcomes, and neonatal outcomes.

Intrapartum Ultrasound for Assessment of Fetal Progression

The use of ultrasound has been suggested to support the management of labour. According to several studies, ultrasound examination is more accurate and reproducible than clinical examination in diagnosing fetal head position, fetal station, and the prediction of labour arrest. Furthermore, there is growing evidence that ultrasound in labour may predict the outcome of instrumental vaginal delivery: a support to assess when an operative delivery is necessary. Ultrasound in labour can be performed using a transabdominal approach, mainly to determine head and spine position, or a transperineal approach, to assess head station and the situation at low stations. Several sonographic parameters have been proposed to evaluate the head station. Furthermore, all ultrasound parameters studied so far, have always been measured with the woman in a supine position. While the biomechanics of childbirth with its mechanisms (known as nutation, counter-nutation of the pelvis, and the coccyx retropulsion) together with maternal movement, promote fetal rotation and the adaptation of its diameters with those of the maternal pelvis, allowing to gain more room for the fetal descent. Moreover, in most of the studies on intrapartum ultrasound, the mobility of the pelvis has not been mentioned. The contracted pelvis is the absence of mobility that leads to fetal-pelvic disproportion, arrest of labour, and operative delivery. Maternal pelvis biomechanics studies by high technological techniques have shown that maternal shifting positions during pregnancy and childbirth can create more room in the pelvis for safe delivery. The external and internal pelvic diameters are closely related. For this reason, the evaluation of the mobility of the pelvis appears to be a necessary element to understand the ability of that pelvis to widen its diameters for fetal descent. The aim of the study is to measure the variation of AoP, HPD in the supine position and in kneeling-squat position in the same woman and the cut-offs of the new ultrasound parameters and predictive capacity for vaginal birth.

Obstetric Risk Assessment & Cesarean-delivery in Labor Estimation Using Artificial Intelligence

ORACLE-AI is a single-center, open-label, randomized clinical trial comparing primiparous women managed with a real-time machine-learning dashboard against a concurrent control group receiving standard intrapartum care. Participants are randomized 1:1 at the onset of labor. The intervention group has the AI dashboard visible in their electronic health record, while the control group does not. The primary hypothesis is that the use of continuous AI-based risk estimates will be non-inferior to standard care in terms of unplanned cesarean\–delivery rates (uCD), with potential secondary benefits in maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Comparing PIEB and CEI for Labor Pain Relief

The purpose of this randomized controlled trial is to compare the efficacy and safety of two epidural analgesia maintenance methods for labor pain relief: Programmed Intermittent Epidural Bolus (PIEB) and Continuous Epidural Infusion (CEI), both combined with Patient-Controlled Epidural Analgesia (PCEA). The study aims to evaluate which technique provides superior analgesia while minimizing anesthetic consumption and preserving maternal motor function. A total of 60 parturients at Family Hospital, Da Nang, will be randomly assigned to either the PIEB or CEI group. Outcomes including pain intensity (VAS scores), total drug consumption, maternal satisfaction, and neonatal Apgar scores will be assessed.

Maternal Informing on Labor Induction: Impact on Childbirth Experience

The aim of this study is to explore the information provided to mothers about labor induction and its connection to their childbirth experience. In addition, the study examines how the use of social media may influence the birth experience among patients undergoing labor induction.