Abstract

(1) Background: Although the current literature shows that daylight saving time (DST) may play a role in human health and behavior, this topic has been poorly investigated with reference to Obstetrics. The aim of this case–control study was to evaluate whether DST may influence the number of spontaneous deliveries. (2) Methods: A low-risk pregnancy cohort with spontaneous onset of labor (n = 7415) was analyzed from a single Italian region for the period 2016–2018. Primary outcome was the number of spontaneous deliveries. Secondary outcomes were: gestational age at delivery, type and time of delivery, use of analgesia, birth weight, and 5-min Apgar at delivery. We compared the outcomes in the two weeks after DST (cases) to the two weeks before DST (controls). (3) Results: Data showed no significant difference between the number of deliveries occurring before and after DST (Chi-square = 0.546, p = 0.46). Vaginal deliveries at any gestational age showed no statistical difference between the two groups (Chi-square = 0.120, p = 0.73). There were no significant differences in the secondary outcomes, as well. (4) Conclusions: DST has neither a significant impact on the number of deliveries nor on the obstetric variables investigated by this study.

Highlights

  • The mechanism that starts the spontaneous onset of labor still remains an unanswered question in the current literature [1]

  • We evaluated whether daylight saving time (DST) might affect the number of spontaneous deliveries in a single Italian region

  • The mean age of the women who delivered during the two weeks before DST were older than those who delivered during the two weeks post DST (31.6 ± 5.4 vs. 31.3 ± 5.3 years, p = 0.033); on the contrary, gestational age was not different in the two groups (39.3 ± 1.4 vs. 39.3 ± 1.4 weeks, p = ns)

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Summary

Introduction

The mechanism that starts the spontaneous onset of labor still remains an unanswered question in the current literature [1]. Scientific research is rich in studies, conducted both in vitro and in vivo, explaining the action of hormones in the onset and maintenance of labor during birth by correlating it with the circadian cycle [2]. Cortisol is the main stress hormone responsible for the normal adaptation of the neonate to extrauterine life. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 8091; doi:10.3390/ijerph17218091 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

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