Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine Special Statement: Best-practice recommendations for ultrasound network connectivity.

Prenatal ultrasound is an indispensable tool used by obstetrical care providers to assist in the everyday care of their pregnant patients. Alongside advancements in imaging, the electronic systems that support this technology have become more advanced. However, it is currently difficult for these individual systems to communicate with each other "out of the box." There is also minimal standardization of the type and format of data transmitted within these systems. Clinicians and system vendors must work collaboratively to create clinical and technical standards to serve as the foundation for increased interoperability among the various systems within each institutional network. Therefore, the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine Clinical Informatics Committee established an Ultrasound Electronic Health Record Subcommittee to facilitate collaboration between clinicians, including maternal-fetal medicine subspecialists, and ultrasound network component vendors. Based on the work of this subcommittee, the purpose of this document is to provide: (1) a basic understanding of ultrasound network architecture and capabilities, and (2) best-practice recommendations for electronic health record order design, obstetrical clinical data standards, and billing and coding practices.

The future of obstetrics/gynecology in 2020: a clearer vision. Transformational forces and thriving in the new system.

Revamping the delivery of women's health care to meet future demands will require a number of changes. In the first 2 articles of this series, we introduced the reasons for change, suggested the use of the 'Triple Aim' concept to (1) improve the health of a population, (2) enhance the patient experience, and (3) control costs as a guide post for changes, and reviewed the transformational forces of payment and care system reform. In the final article, we discuss the valuable use of information technology and disruptive clinical technologies. The new health care system will require a digital transformation so that there can be increased communication, availability of information, and ongoing assessment of clinical care. This will allow for more cost-effective and individualized treatments as data are securely shared between patients and providers. Scientific advances that radically change clinical practice are coming at an accelerated pace as the underlying technologies of genetics, robotics, artificial intelligence, and molecular biology are translated into tools for diagnosis and treatment. Thriving in the new system not only will require time-honored traits such as leadership and compassion but also will require the obstetrician/gynecologist to become comfortable with technology, care redesign, and quality improvement.

National Partnership for Maternal Safety: consensus bundle on obstetric hemorrhage.

Hemorrhage is the most frequent cause of severe maternal morbidity and preventable maternal mortality and therefore is an ideal topic for the initial national maternity patient safety bundle. These safety bundles outline critical clinical practices that should be implemented in every maternity unit. They are developed by multidisciplinary work groups of the National Partnership for Maternal Safety under the guidance of the Council on Patient Safety in Women's Health Care. The safety bundle is organized into four domains: Readiness, Recognition and Prevention, Response, and Reporting and System Learning. Although the bundle components may be adapted to meet the resources available in individual facilities, standardization within an institution is strongly encouraged. References contain sample resources and "Potential Best Practices" to assist with implementation.

Postpartum hemorrhage: state and national response.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The rise in maternal mortality has raised a significant concern for epidemiologists and providers. One of the most preventable and frequent causes of maternal death is hemorrhage-related events. Most providers of obstetrical care see such complications on a frequent basis, and the costs in maternal lives and blood usage have become a universal concern. As a result, a number of important responses by state and national groups have taken place to address these preventable bad outcomes. RECENT FINDINGS: A number of well designed step-by-step protocols have had success in preventing morbidity and mortality. Expert panels have applied toolkits, including risk screening, medication protocols, transfusion protocols and clinical procedures, to either abate or mitigate the effects of uterine bleeding. The usage of these 'toolkits' has allowed institutions to lower blood utilization and improve maternal outcomes in various care settings. Readiness of institutions to rapidly respond in an organized fashion prevents many of the secondary complications. SUMMARY: Postpartum hemorrhage toolkits and their application are excellent examples of system readiness improvement to address a specific obstetrical problem. Widespread adoption should lead to a reduction in maternal mortality and morbidity.

The future of obstetrics/gynecology in 2020: a clearer vision: finding true north and the forces of change.

The pressure to transform health care has been building for many years, and many frameworks have been proposed for this transformation. The 'Triple Aim' concept of improving the health of the population, improving the experience of the patient, and controlling cost can be used as a guide post for the adoption of the necessary changes to thrive in a new construct of women's health care. Following these guiding principles should lead to improved clinical outcomes at affordable costs with high patient and provider satisfaction. The actual changes will come in the form of various 'transformational forces.' One of the driving forces will be conversion of the current payment structure from a fee-for-service model to value-based payments. In addition, the methods of care must be redesigned into a 'team-based' approach in which providers and patients use best practice protocols that are individualized to specific patient needs. Redesign will continue to drive consolidation of providers into larger groups to cover the cost of the needed infrastructure.

The future of obstetrics/gynecology in 2020: a clearer vision. Why is change needed?

External and internal pressures are causing rapid changes to the delivery of health care that markedly will influence the practice of obstetrics and gynecology. These changes can be divided into broad categories: (1) Burden of the high cost of current health care on society; (2) demographic changes in women that include aging, obesity, diversity, and chronic medical conditions; and (3) workforce changes that include growing provider shortages, inexperience, and desires for improved lifestyles. The combination of these factors has brought health care to a strategic inflection point where current practice methods will lead to an inability to meet the demand for health care because of increasing volume while simultaneously controlling costs and improving quality. This necessitates providing women's health care in a redesigned fashion for it to flourish in the new world of medicine.

The use of ultrasound to detect small-for-gestational-age infants in patients with elevated human chorionic gonadotropin on maternal serum screening.

We evaluated serial sonography for the antenatal detection of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants in pregnancies with elevated human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels on midtrimester triple-marker screen. A retrospective cohort study was performed at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center where serial ultrasounds from 26 weeks to delivery are generally recommended for patients with hCG levels >2.0 Multiple of the Median (MoM). From 1999 to 2007, 659 subjects were identified for analysis. The incidence of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and SGA were 5.2% and 7.3%, respectively. Antenatal ultrasound identified 31.3% of SGA infants. Compared with estimated fetal weight (EFW) <10th percentile alone, abdominal circumference (AC) <10th percentile improved the detection of SGA from 31.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 18.7 to 46.3) to 35.4% (95% CI, 22.2 to 50.5). Using either EFW or AC further increased the sensitivity to 45.8% (95% CI, 31.4 to 60.8). The sensitivity for the detection of SGA was 100% when an EFW cutoff of 75% was used. Ultrasound can be used to detect SGA infants in patients with elevated hCG levels on midtrimester serum screening. A sonographic estimated fetal weight > or = 75th percentile appears to be a safe cutoff to rule out all fetuses at risk for SGA.

Hospital-Level Variation in the Frequency of Cesarean Delivery Among Nulliparous Women Who Undergo Labor Induction.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the use of administrative data for identification of labor induction and to estimate the variation in cesarean delivery rates among low-risk women who underwent labor induction. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed examining live births in California hospitals during 2016 and 2017 using birth certificate data linked with maternal patient discharge records. Initially, eight hospitals performed medical record reviews by using reVITALize definitions on 46,916 deliveries to assess the validity of induction identification by birth certificate or discharge diagnosis records or both. Hospital-level variation in cesarean delivery rates was then assessed among all California hospitals for women with low-obstetric-risk first births before and after further risk adjustment and after the exclusion of potential medical and obstetric indications for induction. Variation in physician-level cesarean delivery rates after induction at four large hospitals also was examined. The relationships between cesarean delivery rates among women with induced labors compared with noninduced labors and with the hospital rate of induction also were explored. RESULTS: Identifying induction by a combination of discharge diagnosis codes and birth certificate data had the highest accuracy (92.9%, 95% CI 92.7-93.2). Among 917,225 births at 238 birthing hospitals, there were 99,441 nulliparous women with term, singleton, vertex pregnancies who were induced. The median cesarean delivery rate after labor induction for nulliparous women with term, singleton, vertex pregnancies was 32.2%, with a range of 18.5-84.6%. This wide variation was not reduced after risk adjustment or after exclusion of all women with induction indications. A similar wide variation was noted within geographic regions, neonatal intensive care levels, and among individual physicians in the same facility. Only very weak associations were found for the cesarean delivery rate after labor induction and either the rate after noninduced labor (R<0.08) or the rate of nulliparous labor induction (R<0.12). CONCLUSION: The large variation of cesarean delivery rates after induction of labor suggests that clinical management plays an important role in achieving induction success.

The risk of acute neonatal morbidities in the delivery room after primary cesarean at term: influence of labor and stage.

We evaluated acute neonatal morbidities in the delivery room associated with primary cesarean performed prior to labor and in the first or second stages of labor. A retrospective cohort study was conducted on subjects undergoing term, primary cesareans at the Women's Pavilion, Miller Children's Hospital in Long Beach, California from 2000 to 2007. Acute neonatal morbidities were tabulated as a function of time during labor when cesarean was performed. Composite neonatal morbidity was defined as the presence of at least one of the following: low 5-minute Apgar score, need for intubation, and/or admission to neonatal intensive care unit. One thousand forty-five subjects delivered by cesarean without labor, 3098 in first stage, and 951 in second stage. Five-minute Apgar score < 7 was more common in cesareans performed during second stage than during first stage or without labor [3/1045 (0.3%) versus 28/3098 (0.9%) versus 12/951 (1.3%), P = 0.039]. Composite neonatal morbidity was not significantly different among the stages. Acute neonatal morbidities were not affected by the presence or absence of labor. Potential long-term sequelae require further study.

Voluntary physician adoption of an inpatient electronic medical record by obstetrician-gynecologists.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to review the utilization statistics for voluntary physician adoption of a comprehensive inpatient electronic record by community obstetrician-gynecologists. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective analysis of administrative data on the utilization of a modern electronic medical record system in a private hospital setting was performed. The physician statistics for order entry and physician documentation pre- and postimplementation were compared. RESULTS: During the study period monthly hospital average was 268 discharges per month and 64.9 orders per discharge. Utilizing the prior stand alone order entry system, 38.7% of orders were directly entered by physicians, and, following implementation, this rose to 72.1% with phone/verbal orders reduced by 44.9%. Monthly transcription rates of history and physical, consultations, operative and discharge summary notes were reduced by 61.5%, 75.8%, 56.6%, and 88.2%, respectively, over the study time period. CONCLUSION: A well designed electronic medical record can be utilized in the voluntary private inpatient setting with significant physician adoption.

National Partnership for Maternal Safety: Consensus Bundle on Safe Reduction of Primary Cesarean Births-Supporting Intended Vaginal Births.

Cesarean births and associated morbidity and mortality have reached near epidemic proportions. The National Partnership for Maternal Safety under the guidance of the Council on Patient Safety in Women's Health Care responded by developing a patient safety bundle to reduce the number of primary cesarean births. Safety bundles outline critical practices to implement in every maternity unit. This National Partnership for Maternity Safety bundle, as with other bundles, is organized into four domains: Readiness, Recognition and Prevention, Response, and Reporting and Systems Learning. Bundle components may be adapted to individual facilities, but standardization within an institution is advised. Evidence-based resources and recommendations are provided to assist implementation.

National Partnership for Maternal Safety: Consensus Bundle on Safe Reduction of Primary Cesarean Births-Supporting Intended Vaginal Births.

Cesarean births and associated morbidity and mortality have reached near epidemic proportions. The National Partnership for Maternal Safety under the guidance of the Council on Patient Safety in Women's Health Care responded by developing a patient safety bundle to reduce the number of primary cesarean births. Safety bundles outline critical practices to implement in every maternity unit. This National Partnership for Maternity Safety bundle, as with other bundles, is organized into four domains: Readiness, Recognition and Prevention, Response, and Reporting and Systems Learning. Bundle components may be adapted to individual facilities, but standardization within an institution is advised. Evidence-based resources and recommendations are provided to assist implementation.

National Partnership for Maternal Safety: Consensus Bundle on Safe Reduction of Primary Cesarean Births- Supporting Intended Vaginal Births.

Cesarean births and associated morbidity and mortality have reached near epidemic proportions. The National Partnership for Maternal Safety under the guidance of the Council on Patient Safety in Women's Health Care responded by developing a patient safety bundle to reduce the number of primary cesarean births. Safety bundles outline critical practices to implement in every maternity unit. This National Partnership for Maternity Safety bundle, as with other bundles, is organized into four domains: Readiness, Recognition and Prevention, Response, and Reporting and Systems Learning. Bundle components may be adapted to individual facilities, but standardization within an institution is advised. Evidence-based resources and recommendations are provided to assist implementation.

Complications of labor induction among multiparous women in a community-based hospital system.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine complications of labor induction compared to spontaneous labor in multiparas. STUDY DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study of multiparous women with live, singleton pregnancies at term, who had no contraindications to labor or labor induction. Cesarean delivery was the primary outcome. RESULTS: Of the study subjects, 7208 experienced spontaneous labor, 2190 underwent labor induction with oxytocin, and 239 underwent labor induction requiring cervical ripening agents. Oxytocin-induced multiparas were 37% more likely to require cesarean compared to those with spontaneous labor (OR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.10-1.71) and nearly 3 times more likely to undergo cesarean when cervical ripening agents were used (OR, 2.82; 95% CI, 1.84-4.53). Women requiring cervical ripening were also 10 times more likely to spend more than 12 hours in labor than those with spontaneous labor. CONCLUSION: Multiparas undergoing labor induction are at increased risk for obstetric complications compared to spontaneous labor.

Accuracy of Blood Loss Measurement during Cesarean Delivery.

Objective This study aims to compare the accuracy of visual, quantitative gravimetric, and colorimetric methods used to determine blood loss during cesarean delivery procedures employing a hemoglobin extraction assay as the reference standard. Study Design In 50 patients having cesarean deliveries blood loss determined by assays of hemoglobin content on surgical sponges and in suction canisters was compared with obstetricians' visual estimates, a quantitative gravimetric method, and the blood loss determined by a novel colorimetric system. Agreement between the reference assay and other measures was evaluated by the Bland-Altman method. Results Compared with the blood loss measured by the reference assay (470 ± 296 mL), the colorimetric system (572 ± 334 mL) was more accurate than either visual estimation (928 ± 261 mL) or gravimetric measurement (822 ± 489 mL). The correlation between the assay method and the colorimetric system was more predictive (standardized coefficient = 0.951, adjusted R2 = 0.902) than either visual estimation (standardized coefficient = 0.700, adjusted R2 = 00.479) or the gravimetric determination (standardized coefficient = 0.564, adjusted R2 = 0.304). Conclusion During cesarean delivery, measuring blood loss using colorimetric image analysis is superior to visual estimation and a gravimetric method. Implementation of colorimetric analysis may enhance the ability of management protocols to improve clinical outcomes.

Standardizing Maternity Care Data to Improve Coordination of Care.

The amount of data generated by health information technology systems is staggering, and using those data to make meaningful care decisions that improve patient outcomes is difficult. The purpose of this article is to describe the Maternal Health Information Initiative, a multidisciplinary group of maternity care stakeholders charged with standardizing maternity care data. Complementary strategies that practicing clinicians can use to support this initiative and improve the usability of maternity care data are provided.

Emergent (crash) cesarean delivery: indications and outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to define the indications and outcomes of emergent cesarean deliveries. STUDY DESIGN: We analyzed prospectively collected singleton maternal and neonatal data from January 1, 1998, to December 31, 2004 of all such cesarean deliveries that were performed. A case-control analysis was performed by matching emergent cesarean deliveries with the next 2 acute cesarean deliveries. RESULTS: There were 126 emergent cesarean deliveries (1:159 deliveries). There were no significant differences in identifiable obstetric or chronic medical risk factors between the 2 groups. Compared with the control subjects, the subjects with emergent cesarean deliveries had an increased risks of cesarean delivery for non-reassuring fetal heart rate (P < .0001; odds ratio, 12.0), cord prolapse (P < .0001), and suspected uterine rupture (P < .0001); in addition, greater risk of a low 1-minute Apgar score (P < .001; odds ratio, 19.5) and low 5-minute Apgar score (P < .001; odds ratio, 10.4), acute respiratory distress of infant (P < .001; odds ratio, 4.21), and infant intubations (P < .0001; odds ratio, 8.1). CONCLUSION: These data demonstrate that most emergent cesarean deliveries develop during labor in low-risk women and cannot be anticipated by prelabor factors. The outcomes demonstrate that infants are at risk in these clinical situations and suggest that strategies to improve performance in these clinical situations are important.

Intrinsic racial differences in the risk of cesarean delivery are not explained by differences in caregivers or hospital site of delivery.

OBJECTIVE: This study was undertaken to assess whether racial differences in the risk of cesarean delivery result from differing practices of their caregivers or the hospitals at which they deliver. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study was performed using the Perinatal Database of the Memorial Health Care System. Logistic regression was used to estimate the risk of primary cesarean delivery among patients eligible for labor. The contribution of hospital and physician level cluster correlation was evaluated using fixed and random effects regression models. RESULTS: Compared with white patients, black and Hispanic patients were 75% and 22% more likely to undergo primary cesarean delivery. Further adjustment for hospital and physician level cluster correlation resulted in persistently increased risks of primary cesarean delivery in black (54%) and Hispanic patients (12%). CONCLUSION: Hospital site of delivery and individual physician practices do not fully explain racial differences in the risk of primary cesarean delivery.

Ethnic disparity in the success of vaginal birth after cesarean delivery.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate whether maternal race/ethnicity is independently associated with successful vaginal birth after cesarean delivery (VBAC). STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study from January 1, 1997 to July 30, 2002 of women with singleton pregnancies and a previous cesarean delivery. The odds ratio (OR) for successful VBAC as a function of ethnicity was corrected for age >35 years, parity, weight gain, diabetes mellitus, hospital site, prenatal care provider, gestational age, induction, labor augmentation, epidural analgesia, and birth weight >4000 g. RESULTS: Among 54 146 births, 8030 (14.8%) occurred in women with previous cesarean deliveries. The trials of labor rates were similar among Caucasian (46.6%), Hispanic (45.4%), and African American (46.0%) women. However, there was a significant difference among ethnic groups for VBAC success rates (79.3% vs. 79.3% vs. 70.0%, respectively). When compared to Caucasian women, the adjusted OR for VBAC success was 0.37 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.27-0.50) for African American women and 0.63 (95% CI 0.51-0.79) for Hispanic women. CONCLUSION: African American and Hispanic women are significantly less likely than Caucasian women to achieve successful VBAC.