TY - JOUR
T1 - Castor oil for induction of labour
T2 - not harmful, not helpful
AU - Boel, Machteld Elisabeth
AU - Lee, Sue Jean
AU - Rijken, Marcus Johannes
AU - Paw, Moo Koo
AU - Pimanpanarak, Mupawjay
AU - Tan, Saw Oo
AU - Singhasivanon, Pratap
AU - Nosten, François
AU - McGready, Rose
PY - 2009
Y1 - 2009
N2 - BACKGROUND: Castor oil is one of the most popular drugs for induction of labour in a non-medical setting; however, published data on safety and effectiveness of this compound to induce labour remain sparse.AIM: To assess the safety and effectiveness of castor oil for induction of labour in pregnancies with an ultrasound estimated gestational at birth of more than 40 weeks.METHODS: Data were extracted from hospital-based records of all pregnant women who attended antenatal clinics on the Thai-Burmese border and who were more than 40 weeks pregnant. The effectiveness of castor oil to induce labour was expressed as time to birth and analysed with a Cox proportional hazards regression model. Measures associated with safety were fetal distress, meconium-stained amniotic fluid, tachysystole of the uterus, uterine rupture, abnormal maternal blood pressure during labour, Apgar scores, neonatal resuscitation, stillbirth, post-partum haemorrhage, severe diarrhoea and maternal death. Proportions were compared using Fisher's exact test.RESULTS: Of 612 women with a gestation of more than 40 weeks, 205 received castor oil for induction and 407 did not. The time to birth was not significantly different between the two groups (hazard ratio 0.99 (95% confidence interval: 0.81 to 1.20; n = 509)). Castor oil use was not associated with any harmful effects on the mother or fetus.CONCLUSIONS: Castor oil for induction of labour had no effect on time to birth nor were there any harmful effects observed in this large series. Our findings leave no justification for recommending castor oil for this purpose.
AB - BACKGROUND: Castor oil is one of the most popular drugs for induction of labour in a non-medical setting; however, published data on safety and effectiveness of this compound to induce labour remain sparse.AIM: To assess the safety and effectiveness of castor oil for induction of labour in pregnancies with an ultrasound estimated gestational at birth of more than 40 weeks.METHODS: Data were extracted from hospital-based records of all pregnant women who attended antenatal clinics on the Thai-Burmese border and who were more than 40 weeks pregnant. The effectiveness of castor oil to induce labour was expressed as time to birth and analysed with a Cox proportional hazards regression model. Measures associated with safety were fetal distress, meconium-stained amniotic fluid, tachysystole of the uterus, uterine rupture, abnormal maternal blood pressure during labour, Apgar scores, neonatal resuscitation, stillbirth, post-partum haemorrhage, severe diarrhoea and maternal death. Proportions were compared using Fisher's exact test.RESULTS: Of 612 women with a gestation of more than 40 weeks, 205 received castor oil for induction and 407 did not. The time to birth was not significantly different between the two groups (hazard ratio 0.99 (95% confidence interval: 0.81 to 1.20; n = 509)). Castor oil use was not associated with any harmful effects on the mother or fetus.CONCLUSIONS: Castor oil for induction of labour had no effect on time to birth nor were there any harmful effects observed in this large series. Our findings leave no justification for recommending castor oil for this purpose.
KW - Adolescent
KW - Adult
KW - Castor Oil
KW - Female
KW - Humans
KW - Labor, Induced
KW - Middle Aged
KW - Myanmar
KW - Oxytocics
KW - Pregnancy
KW - Proportional Hazards Models
KW - Retrospective Studies
KW - Thailand
KW - Young Adult
KW - Journal Article
U2 - 10.1111/j.1479-828X.2009.01055.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1479-828X.2009.01055.x
M3 - Article
C2 - 19780733
SN - 0004-8666
VL - 49
SP - 499
EP - 503
JO - The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology
JF - The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology
IS - 5
ER -