Reduced risk of cesarean delivery with oxytocin discontinuation in active labor: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

What It Covers

The paper reports a study of Oxytocin, published as a meta-analysis.

Their objective was to determine if oxytocin discontinuation in the active phase of labor impacts the rate of cesarean delivery compared to continuation of oxytocin.

The adherence of each included trial to the trustworthiness criteria outlined by the OBGYN Editors' Integrity Group was assessed, and a leave-1-out analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of studies with concerns regarding trustworthiness.

Why It Was Studied

This study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

A research librarian performed a database search using a combination of standardized terms and keywords related to oxytocin discontinuation and stages of labor from database inception until February 2024.

Who the Included Studies Covered

PubMed tags the participants as women only.

Randomized controlled trials of pregnant patients who received oxytocin for induction or augmentation of labor, whose outcomes compared discontinuation and continuation of oxytocin in active labor, were included.

How the Review Was Done

The risk of bias in each study was assessed using the guidelines outlined in the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions.

Heterogeneity was measured using Higgins I2.

What Was Measured

The primary outcome was the rate of cesarean delivery.

Secondary maternal outcomes included postpartum hemorrhage, total blood loss, and infectious outcomes.

The subject headings attached to it are Cesarean Section, Labor, Induced, Oxytocics, Oxytocin, Postpartum Hemorrhage and Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic.

The authors tagged it with the keywords augmentation, epidural, induction, newborn and obstetrics.

What This Means in Plain Language

This is a meta-analysis of Oxytocin.

The abstract goes on to report its results in about 6 sentences; this page does not restate them, so read the paper for the findings and their limits.

The publication is from 2025 (American journal of obstetrics and gynecology), a journal based in United States.

More context: the Oxytocin compound page, all human trials.