Table 4. Interventions shown to increase rates of caesarean birth.
| Author, Year* | Intervention and comparator | Caesarean birth (CB); RR/OR (95% CI), number of trials; n = number of participants |
|---|---|---|
| Alfirevic 2009 | Intravenous oxytocin alone for third trimester cervical ripening or IOL versus placebo /expectant management in pregnant women | RR 1.17 (1.01 to 1.35), 24 trials, n = 6620 |
| Alfirevic 2017 | Continuous CTG during labour versus no fetal monitoring or IA with Pinard stethoscope or hand-held Doppler ultrasound device | CTG versus IA: All women RR 1.63 (1.29 to 1.33), 11 trials, n = 18861; High-risk women RR 1.91 (1.39 to 2.61), 6 trials, n = 2069; Low-risk women RR 2.06 (1.24 to 3.45), 2 trials, n = 1431 |
| Bond 2017 |
Planned early birth (IOL or CS) versus expectant management for women with preterm pre-labour rupture of the membranes between 24 and 37 weeks’ gestation | RR 1.26 (1.11 to 1.44), 12 trials, n = 3620 |
| Dodd 2015 |
Antenatal care specifically designed for women with a multiple pregnancy versus usual care | RR 1.38 (1.06 to 1.81), 1 trial, n = 162 |
| Martis 2017 |
IA during labour versus another method of IA in pregnant women | Intermittent CTG versus Pinard - Caesarean for fetal distress RR 2.92 (1.78 to 4.80), 1 trial, n = 633 - Overall RR 1.92 (1.39 to 2.64), 1 trial, n = 633 - Doppler versus Pinard - Caesarean for fetal distress RR 2.71 (1.64 to 4.48), 1 study, n = 627 |
| Pattinson 2017 | Pelvimetry versus no pelvimetry in pregnant women with a singleton, cephalic presentation fetus who have or have not had a previous caesarean section | All women RR 1.34 (1.19 to 1.52), 5 trials, n = 1159; Women with no previous caesarean RR 1.24 (1.02 to 1.52), 3 trials, n = 769; Women with previous caesarean RR 1.45 (1.26 to 1.67), 2 trials, n = 390 |
| Stock 2016 |
Immediate delivery versus deferred delivery for a set period of time, until test results worsen, or expectant management in pregnant women at > 36 weeks’ in whom there is clinical suspicion of fetal compromise | RR 1.15 (1.07 to 1.24), 1 trial, n = 547 |
| Till 2015 |
Direct incentives explicitly linked to initiation and frequency of prenatal care (e.g. cash, vouchers, coupons or products not generally offered to patients as a standard of prenatal care) versus no incentives to increase utilization of timely prenatal care among pregnant women | RR 1.97 (1.18 to 3.30), 1 study, n = 979 |
*See S1 File for full references to the reviews