One-on-one midwife care linked to lower risk of premature birth

Women who have a midwife as their main carer throughout pregnancy and birth are around 23% less likely to have a premature baby than women whose care is shared between different obstetricians, GPs and midwives, a new systematic review published by The Cochrane Library has found.

Midwife-led continuity of care – in which a pregnant woman sees the same midwife during pregnancy and labour – is also associated with a lower risk of fetal loss before 24 weeks' gestation and reduced likelihood of labour interventions such as episiotomies (a surgical cut) or use of forceps.

The latest Cochrane review, based on a systematic review of 13 trials involving 16,242 women, concluded that most women, unless they have significant risk factors, should have the option of midwife-led continuity of care.

"Most women should be offered midwife-led continuity models of care and women should be encouraged to ask for this option, although caution should be exercised in applying this advice to women with substantial medical or obstetric complications," the authors concluded.

"The majority of included studies reported a higher rate of maternal satisfaction in the midwifery-led continuity care model. Similarly, there was a trend towards a cost-saving effect for midwife-led continuity care compared to other care models."

Stunning outcome

Hannah Dahlen, Professor of Midwifery at University of Western Sydney, said the most significant finding was association between one-on-one midwife care and a significant reduction in the risk of preterm birth.

Read the full story on The Conversation(opens in a new window)

Interviewed:

  • Hannah Dahlen Professor of Midwifery at University of Western Sydney
  • Sally Tracy Professor in Midwifery at University of Sydney
  • Alec Welsh Professor and Head of Maternal Fetal Medicine at University of New South Wales
  • Andrew Bisits Associate Professor (Conjoint), School of Women's and Children's Health at University of New South Wales

Source: The Conversation
Posted: August 21, 2013
Type: Online