Upright positions shorten first-stage labour by an hour

Washington, Apr 15 (ANI): Women in early stages of childbirth can significantly shorten the first stage of labour if they kneel, stand up, walk around, or sit upright as opposed to lying down, according to a new systematic review.

Cochrane Researchers have found that lying down can slow progress during early stages of labour, while it could be an hour shorter in women who adopted upright positions.

For the study, the researchers used data from 21 studies carried out in developed countries since the 1960s, involving 3,706 women.

"In most developing countries, women stand up or walk around as they wish during the early stages of birth with no ill effects," said Annemarie Lawrence, who works at the Institute of Women's and Children's Health at the Townsville Hospital in Queensland, Australia.

She added: "This review demonstrates that there is some benefit and no risk to being upright and or mobile during first stage labour. Based on these results, we would recommend that women are encouraged to use whichever positions they find most comfortable, but are specifically advised to avoid lying flat."

And now, the researchers are trying to gather more information to understand how birthing positions relate to levels of pain, control and satisfaction among birthing women. (ANI)