Abstract
Objective: Determine success of term inductions of labor among an obese patient population. Methods: A retrospective chart review of all women greater than 37 weeks gestation who underwent induction of labor at University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics (12-2012 to 03-2013). Chart abstraction included data from the patient’s prenatal care, medical history, labor history, delivery and postpartum course. Subjects were stratified by pre-pregnancy BMI. Results: 74 inductions occurred at greater than 37 weeks gestation during the study period. Successful vaginal delivery (operative and spontaneous) occurred for 80.4% of normal weight women versus 82.6% for women who were obese pre-pregnancy (p=0.85). Induction of obese women was associated with significantly longer infant admission (2.82 days vs 6.09 days, p=0.03) and a higher likelihood to be admitted to neonatal intensive care (5.88% vs 26.09%, p=.021). Conclusions: While rates of successful vaginal delivery following induction were similar between normal weight and obese women, infants of obese women were more likely to require admission to neonatal intensive care and require longer hospital stays.
Highlights
Obesity is a growing epidemic facing healthcare in the United States
102 inductions occurred during the study period with 74 patients undergoing induction at greater than 37 weeks gestation. 31.8% were obese (BMI > 30), including 12 women who fit criteria for morbid obesity class III (BMI > 40)
The total rate of successful induction of labor resulting in a vaginal delivery was 81.1 % for the entire cohort
Summary
Obesity is a growing epidemic facing healthcare in the United States. More than one-third of all adults are obese (Body Mass Index or BMI ≥ 30), with 6% of the population classified as extremely obese (BMI ≥ 40).[1] For one-third of women of childbearing age, obesity will complicate pregnancy. Obese women face higher rates of gestational diabetes mellitus and macrosomic babies, an increased risk of preeclampsia and hypertension, as well as higher rates of post-term pregnancy.[2,3,4] For these reasons, obese. Please cite this paper as: Lin I, Hardy-Fairbanks AJ. Impact of obesity on rates of successful vaginal delivery after term induction of labor. Proceedings in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 2015;5(2):Article 4 [ 5 p.]. Available from: http://ir.uiowa.edu/pog/ Free full text article
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