Table 1. Labour characteristics and interventions by parity.
| Demographic characteristics | Parity = 0 | Parity = 1 | Parity = 2+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Study population: N = 5,606 | 2,166 | 1,488 | 1,952 |
| Country | |||
| Nigeria | 1,102 (50.88) | 645 (43.35) | 793 (40.62) |
| Uganda | 1,064 (49.12) | 843 (56.65) | 1,159 (59.38) |
| Age: years, mean (SD) | 25.12 (4.17) | 27.14 (4.05) | 30.98 (4.64) |
| Maternal height: cm, mean (SD) | 159.88 (6.76) | 159.96 (6.57) | 160.43 (6.67) |
| Maternal weight at delivery: kg, mean (SD) | 71.84 (11.59) | 73.82 (12.35) | 76.37 (12.55) |
| Maternal BMI at delivery: mean (SD) | 28.09 (4.12) | 28.86 (4.51) | 29.66 (4.53) |
| Labour admission observations | |||
| Amniotic membranes status: N (%) | |||
| Intact | 1,630 (75.25) | 1,189 (79.91) | 1,530 (78.38) |
| Ruptured | 534 (24.65) | 295 (19.83) | 420 (21.52) |
| Unknown | 2 (0.09) | 4 (0.27) | 2 (0.10) |
| Cervix effacement: N (%) | |||
| Thick (<30%) | 338 (15.60) | 213 (14.31) | 299 (15.32) |
| Medium (up to 50%) | 745 (34.40) | 422 (28.36) | 585 (29.97) |
| Thin (up to 80%) | 918 (42.38) | 737 (49.53) | 921 (47.18) |
| Very thin (>80%) | 160 (7.39) | 110 (7.39) | 142 (7.27) |
| Unknown | 5 (0.23) | 6 (0.40) | 5 (0.26) |
| Cervical dilatation: cm, median (10th, 90th percentiles) | 4 (2, 6) | 4 (2, 6) | 4 (2, 6) |
| Fetal station: N (%) | |||
| Above ischial spine | 1,591 (73.45) | 1,056 (70.97) | 1,382 (70.80) |
| At ischial spine | 438 (20.22) | 316 (21.24) | 389 (19.93) |
| Below ischial spine | 136 (6.28) | 112 (7.53) | 173 (8.86) |
| Unknown | 1 (0.05) | 4 (0.27) | 8 (0.41) |
| Caput succedaneum: N (%) | |||
| None | 2,158 (99.60) | 1,486 (99.90) | 1,949 (99.80) |
| Mild | 7 (0.30) | 1 (0.10) | 3 (0.20) |
| Moderate | 1 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| Severe | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| Unknown | 0 (0.00) | 1 (0.07) | 0 (0.00) |
| Moulding: N (%) | |||
| 0 (none) | 2,151 (99.30) | 1,479 (99.50) | 1,942 (99.50) |
| 1+ (first degree) | 13 (0.60) | 8 (0.50) | 10 (0.50) |
| 2+ (second degree) | 2 (0.10) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| 3+ (third degree) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| Unknown | 0 (0.00) | 1 (0.07) | 0 (0.00) |
| Intrapartum interventions and observations | |||
| Total number of vaginal examinations in first stage: median (10th, 90th percentiles) | 3 (2, 5) | 3 (2, 4) | 3 (2, 4) |
| Augmentation with oxytocin infusion: N (%) | 866 (40.00) | 444 (29.80) | 522 (26.70) |
| Labour analgesia: N (%) | |||
| IV/IM Opioid | 69 (3.20) | 22 (1.50) | 17 (0.90) |
| Epidural | 0 (0.00) | 1 (0.10) | 0 (0.00) |
| Spinal | 1 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| Other | 31 (1.40) | 17 (1.10) | 21 (1.10) |
| Combined | 0 (0.00) | 1 (0.10) | 0 (0.00) |
| Presence of a labour companion*: N (%) | |||
| 0 | 1,053 (48.61) | 661 (44.42) | 808 (41.39) |
| 1 | 304 (14.04) | 300 (20.16) | 414 (21.21) |
| 2 | 371 (17.13) | 276 (18.55) | 400 (20.49) |
| ≥3 | 429 (19.81) | 240 (16.13) | 316 (16.19) |
| Unknown | 9 (0.42) | 11 (0.74) | 14 (0.72) |
| Oral fluid intake*: N (%) | |||
| 0 | 674 (31.12) | 453 (30.44) | 556 (28.48) |
| 1 | 489 (22.58) | 451 (30.31) | 587 (30.07) |
| 2 | 531 (24.52) | 343 (23.05) | 464 (23.77) |
| ≥3 | 463 (21.38) | 230 (15.46) | 328 (16.80) |
| Unknown | 9 (0.42) | 11 (0.74) | 17 (0.87) |
| Oral food intake*: N (%) | |||
| 0 | 1,698 (78.39) | 1,187 (79.77) | 1,561 (79.97) |
| 1 | 273 (12.60) | 207 (13.91) | 255 (13.06) |
| 2 | 118 (5.45) | 52 (3.49) | 92 (4.71) |
| ≥3 | 67 (3.09) | 29 (1.95) | 27 (1.38) |
| Unknown | 10 (0.46) | 13 (0.87) | 17 (0.87) |
| Caput succedaneum**: N (%) | |||
| None | 1,911 (88.23) | 1,368 (91.94) | 1,814 (92.93) |
| Mild | 202 (9.33) | 102 (6.85) | 113 (5.79) |
| Moderate | 44 (2.03) | 10 (0.67) | 16 (0.82) |
| Severe | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
| Unknown | 9 (0.42) | 8 (0.54) | 9 (0.46) |
| Moulding**: N (%) | |||
| 0 (none) | 1,758 (81.16) | 1,219 (81.92) | 1,598 (81.86) |
| 1+ (first degree) | 332 (15.33) | 225 (15.12) | 312 (15.98) |
| 2+ (second degree) | 64 (2.95) | 35 (2.35) | 32 (1.64) |
| 3+ (third degree) | 2 (0.10) | 1 (0.10) | 1 (0.10) |
| Unknown | 10 (0.46) | 8 (0.54) | 9 (0.46) |
| Birth outcomes | |||
| Mode of birth: N (%) | |||
| Spontaneous vaginal birth (without episiotomy) | 849 (39.20) | 1,218 (81.90) | 1,798 (92.10) |
| Spontaneous vaginal birth (with episiotomy) | 1,255 (57.90) | 250 (16.80) | 145 (7.40) |
| Operative vaginal birth (forceps or vacuum) | 62 (2.90) | 20 (1.30) | 9 (0.50) |
| Gestational age at birth: weeks, mean (SD) | 38.74 (1.11) | 38.74 (1.11) | 38.77 (1.10) |
| Birth weight: g, mean (SD) | 3,139.72 (404.22) | 3,277.48 (409.12) | 3,348.28 (438.91) |
*Frequency of observations during intrapartum assessments
**Most ‘severe’ observation during intrapartum assessments