In a meta-analysis, researchers estimate that women who received continuing care from a midwife were less likely to have complications during childbirth.
Being accompanied by a small group of midwives throughout the pregnancy would avoid complications during childbirth! This is the conclusion of a meta-analysis published in August 2013 in the Cochrane Library. These researchers cite as examples a large number of countries (United Kingdom, Australia, etc.) in which midwives act as the main providers of care for women throughout pregnancy, labor and birth. childbirth.
To conduct this research, these scientists looked at data from 13 trials involving a total of 16,242 women. And the reported results are final. Each time, when midwives were on the front line throughout the pregnancy period, women were less likely to give birth before 37 weeks or lose their babies before 24 weeks.
For those who were under the care of an obstetrician or an attending physician, the results were less satisfactory care, stress the authors.
And the list of benefits doesn’t end there. In these women followed by midwives, the rate of epidurals or assisted deliveries was also lower, as well as the number of episiotomies (surgical act consisting in opening the perineum to allow the passage of the child. during childbirth).
Finally, these women accompanied by midwives were less likely to undergo a cesarean section, although the authors noted, however, that they were in labor for about half an hour longer on average.
The researchers concluded that all women should benefit from the continuity of care provided by a midwife unless they suffer from serious medical or obstetric complications. “Women should be encouraged to apply for this option,” says research director Jane Sandall of the Division of Women’s Health at King’s College, London, UK.
“Policymakers in parts of the world where health systems do not provide midwifery care should consider the importance of midwives in improving obstetric care and how the financing of midwifery services is provided. dispensed by midwives can be reviewed in this sense. », She concludes.
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