Table 3. Interventions shown to reduce rates of caesarean birth.

Author, Year*	Intervention and comparator	Caesarean birth (CB); RR/OR (95% CI), number of trials; n = number of participants
Alfirevic 2014	Oral misoprostol for IOL versus placebo/no treatment in pregnant women	RR 0.72 (0.54 to 0.95), 8 trials, n = 1029
Alfirevic 2016	All pharmacological (all routes and doses), mechanical and complementary methods used for IOL versus placebo/no intervention in pregnant women carrying a viable fetus and who are eligible for any method of third-trimester cervical ripening or IOL	586 trials, n = 96771 - Vaginal PGE2 (gel) OR 0.79 (0.65 to 0.94) - Intracervical PGE2 OR 0.83 (0.69 to 0.98) - Vaginal misoprostol tablet < 50μg OR 0.70 (0.57 to 0.85) - Vaginal misoprostol tablet ≥ 50μg OR 0.73 (0.59 to 0.88) - Oral misoprostol tablet ≥ 50μg OR 0.72 (0.58 to 0.88) - Titrated (low-dose) oral misoprostol solution OR 0.62 (0.47 to 0.80)Foley catheter OR 0.76 (0.61 to 0.95) - Membrane sweeping OR 0.74 (0.53 to 0.99) - Buccal/sublingual misoprostol OR 0.68 (0.51 to 0.89)
Bohren 2017	Continuous, one-to-one intrapartum support versus usual care in any birth setting	RR 0.75 (0.64 to 0.88), 24 trials, n = 15347
Cluver 2015	Interventions to facilitate ECV at term versus placebo/no intervention	Beta stimulants RR 0.77 (0.67 to 0.88), 6 trials, n = 742; Tocolytics in nulliparous RR 0.85 (0.75 to 0.97), 2 trials, n = 170
Dodd 2017	Progestogen by any route (IV, IM, oral or vaginal) for the prevention of preterm birth versus placebo or no treatment	Vaginal progesterone RR 0.93 (0.88 to 0.98), 6 trials, n = 2143
East 2014	Use of fetal pulse oximetry (FPO) with or without concurrent use of conventional fetal monitoring versus conventional only (no pulse oximetry) in women in labour where fetal monitoring is clinically indicated	FPO and CTG vs CTG only from 36 weeks; FBS prior to study entry RR 0.44 (0.24 to 0.81), 1 trial, n = 146
Gulmezoglu 2012	Labour induction versus expectant management in pregnant women at or beyond term at low risk for complications	All women RR 0.89 (0.81 to 0.97), 21 trials, n = 8749; 41 weeks RR 0.74 (0.58 to 0.96), 4 trials, n = 998; Cervix unfavourable RR 0.88 (0.80 to 0.98), 8 trials, n = 5051
Hapangama 2009	Mifepristone for third trimester cervical ripening or IOL versus placebo/no treatment in pregnant women due for third trimester IOL carrying a viable fetus	Mifepristone all doses RR 0.74 (0.60 to 0.92), 9 trials, n = 1043
Hodnett 2010	Standardized or individualized programs of additional social support versus usual care for pregnant women believed at high risk for giving birth to babies that are either preterm or weigh less than 2500 gm, or both, at birth	RR 0.87 (0.78 to 0.97), 9 trials, n = 4522
Hofmeyr 2012b	Amnioinfusion (AI) versus no AI in women whose babies were considered to be at increased risk of, or had FHR patterns suggestive of, umbilical cord compression in labour	Transcervical AI RR 0.62 (0.46 to 0.83), 13 trials, n = 1493; CS for suspected fetal distress RR 0.46 (0.31to 0.68), 12 trials, n = 1588
Hofmeyr 2014	Amnioinfusion for meconium-stained liquor in labour versus no amnioinfusion in women in labour with moderate or thick meconium staining of the amniotic fluid	RR 0.59 (0.41 to 0.84), 3 trials, n = 1137 (limited peripartum surveillance)
Hofmeyr 2015	ECV versus no ECV in pregnant women with babies in the breech presentation at or near term	RR 0.57 (0.40 to 0.82), 8 trials, n = 1305
Kavanagh 2006	Hyaluronidase versus placebo/no treatment for third trimester cervical ripening or IOL in pregnant women due for third trimester induction of labour, carrying a viable fetus	All women RR 0.37 (0.22 to 0.61), 1 trial, n = 168; Primiparae RR 0.43 (0.23 to 0.81), 1 trial, n = 94; Multiparae RR 0.28 (0.12 to 0.67), 1 trial, n = 74; Women with previous caesarean RR 0.35 (0.15 to 0.81), 1 trial, n = 29
Lavender 2013	Labour management using a partogram versus no partogram in women with singleton pregnancies, cephalic in spontaneous labour at term	Low-resource setting RR 0.38 (0.24 to 0.61), 1 trial, n = 434
Smith 2006	Complementary and alternative therapies used in labour (but not biofeedback) with or without concurrent use of pharmacological or non-pharmacological interventions versus placebo or no treatment in women in spontaneous or induced labour, for pain management in labour	Hypnosis RR 0.46 (0.30 to 0.72), 1 trial, n = 520
Smith 2011a	Acupuncture or acupressure versus placebo, no treatment for pain management in labour	Acupressure RR 0.24 (0.11 to 0.54), 1 trial, n = 120
Wei 2013	Early augmentation with amniotomy and oxytocin versus conservative form of management in pregnant women in spontaneous labour	Prevention studies RR 0.87 (0.77 to 0.99), 11 trials, n = 7753

*See S1 File for full references to the reviews