Is elective induction safe? A prospective analysis.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To identify whether electively induced labor places the mother or her fetus at an increased risk as compared to her spontaneous labor cohort. To quantify the risk of cesarean section in the induced group. METHODS: A prospective analysis comparing 200 electively induced parturients with 200 matched controls who labored spontaneously, in 1 year from April 2007 to April 2008. The parturients were between 37 and 41 weeks of gestation and had no complications necessitating induction. RESULTS: Induction per se was not associated with a statistically significant increase in cesarean section rates. Only when associated with nulliparity, low bishop score, and birth weight >3.5 kg, the risk of cesarean increases. CONCLUSION: Elective induction does not appear to pose an increased risk to the mother or her fetus in a carefully selected patient population. However, when associated with risk factors the cesarean rate increases. Hence informed consent should be taken before induction.