Waterbirth: a national retrospective cohort study of factors associated with its use in 46,088 women in England

Abstract Background Waterbirth is widely available in English maternity settings for women who are not at increased risk of complications during labour. Immersion in water during labour is associated with a number of maternal benefits, however for birth in water the situation is less clear, with conclusive evidence on safety lacking and little known about the characteristics of women who give birth in water. This retrospective cohort study uses electronic data routinely collected in the course of maternity care in England in 2015-16 to describe the proportion of births recorded as having occurred in water; the characteristics of women who experienced waterbirth; and the odds of key maternal and neonatal complications associated with giving birth in water.Methods Data was obtained from three population level electronic datasets linked together for the purposes of a national audit of maternity care. The study cohort included women who had no risk factors requiring them to give birth in an obstetric unit according to national guidelines. (1) Multivariate logistic regression models were used to examine maternal (postpartum haemorrhage of 1500mls or more, obstetric anal sphincter injury (OASI)) and neonatal (Apgar score less than 7, neonatal unit admission) outcomes associated with waterbirth.Results 46,088 low and intermediate risk singleton term spontaneous vaginal births in 35 NHS Trusts in England were included in the analysis cohort. Of these 6264 (13.6%) were recorded as having occurred in water. Waterbirth was more likely in older women up to the age of 40 (adjusted odds ratio (adjOR) for age group 35-39 1.27 95% confidence interval (1.15,1.41)) and less common in women under 25 (adjOR 18-24 0.76 (0.70, 0.82)), those of higher parity (parity ≥3 adjOR 0.56 (0.47,0.66)) or who were obese (BMI 30–34.9 adjOR 0.77 (0.70,0.85)) . Waterbirth was also less likely in black (adjOR 0.42 (0.36, 0.51)) and Asian (adjOR 0.26 (0.23,0.30)) women and in those from areas of increased socioeconomic deprivation (most affluent versus least affluent areas adjOR 0.47 (0.43, 0.52)).There was no association between delivery in water and low Apgar score (adjOR 0.95 (0.66,1.36)) or OASI (adjOR 1.00 (0.86,1.16). or incidence of OASI (adjOR 1.00 (0.86,1.16)). There was an association between waterbirth and reduced incidence of postpartum haemorrhage (adjOR 0.68 (0.51,0.90)) and neonatal unit admission (adjOR 0.65 (0.53,0.78)).Conclusions In this large observational cohort study, there was no association between waterbirth and specific adverse outcomes for either the mother or the baby. There was evidence that white women from higher socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to be recorded as giving birth in water. Maternity services should focus on ensuring equitable access to waterbirth.

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Waterbirth: a national retrospective cohort study of factors associated with its use among women in England

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth ◽

10.1186/s12884-021-03724-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

H. Aughey ◽

◽

J. Jardine ◽

N. Moitt ◽

K. Fearon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Apgar Score ◽

Maternity Care ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Postpartum Haemorrhage ◽

White Women ◽

Neonatal Unit ◽

Study Cohort ◽

Increased Risk

Abstract Background Waterbirth is widely available in English maternity settings for women who are not at increased risk of complications during labour. Immersion in water during labour is associated with a number of maternal benefits. However for birth in water the situation is less clear, with conclusive evidence on safety lacking and little known about the characteristics of women who give birth in water. This retrospective cohort study uses electronic data routinely collected in the course of maternity care in England in 2015–16 to describe the proportion of births recorded as having occurred in water, the characteristics of women who experienced waterbirth and the odds of key maternal and neonatal complications associated with giving birth in water. Methods Data were obtained from three population level electronic datasets linked together for the purposes of a national audit of maternity care. The study cohort included women who had no risk factors requiring them to give birth in an obstetric unit according to national guidelines. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to examine maternal (postpartum haemorrhage of 1500mls or more, obstetric anal sphincter injury (OASI)) and neonatal (Apgar score less than 7, neonatal unit admission) outcomes associated with waterbirth. Results 46,088 low and intermediate risk singleton term spontaneous vaginal births in 35 NHS Trusts in England were included in the analysis cohort. Of these 6264 (13.6%) were recorded as having occurred in water. Waterbirth was more likely in older women up to the age of 40 (adjusted odds ratio (adjOR) for age group 35–39 1.27, 95% confidence interval (1.15,1.41)) and less common in women under 25 (adjOR 18–24 0.76 (0.70, 0.82)), those of higher parity (parity ≥3 adjOR 0.56 (0.47,0.66)) or who were obese (BMI 30–34.9 adjOR 0.77 (0.70,0.85)). Waterbirth was also less likely in black (adjOR 0.42 (0.36, 0.51)) and Asian (adjOR 0.26 (0.23,0.30)) women and in those from areas of increased socioeconomic deprivation (most affluent versus least affluent areas adjOR 0.47 (0.43, 0.52)). There was no association between delivery in water and low Apgar score (adjOR 0.95 (0.66,1.36)) or incidence of OASI (adjOR 1.00 (0.86,1.16)). There was an association between waterbirth and reduced incidence of postpartum haemorrhage (adjOR 0.68 (0.51,0.90)) and neonatal unit admission (adjOR 0.65 (0.53,0.78)). Conclusions In this large observational cohort study, there was no association between waterbirth and specific adverse outcomes for either the mother or the baby. There was evidence that white women from higher socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to be recorded as giving birth in water. Maternity services should focus on ensuring equitable access to waterbirth.

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Proton pump inhibitors versus histamine-2 receptor blockers for stress ulcer prophylaxis in patients with sepsis: a retrospective cohort study

Journal of International Medical Research ◽

10.1177/03000605211025130 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 49 (6) ◽

pp. 030006052110251

Author(s):

Minqiang Huang ◽

Ming Han ◽

Wei Han ◽

Lei Kuang

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Hospital Mortality ◽

Critically Ill ◽

Proton Pump ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Stress Ulcer ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Ulcer Prophylaxis

Objective We aimed to compare the efficacy and risks of proton pump inhibitor (PPI) versus histamine-2 receptor blocker (H2B) use for stress ulcer prophylaxis (SUP) in critically ill patients with sepsis and risk factors for gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB). Methods In this retrospective cohort study, we used the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III Clinical Database to identify critically ill adult patients with sepsis who had at least one risk factor for GIB and received either an H2B or PPI for ≥48 hours. Propensity score matching (PSM) was conducted to balance baseline characteristics. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. Results After 1:1 PSM, 1056 patients were included in the H2B and PPI groups. The PPI group had higher in-hospital mortality (23.8% vs. 17.5%), GIB (8.9% vs. 1.6%), and pneumonia (49.6% vs. 41.6%) rates than the H2B group. After adjusting for risk factors of GIB and pneumonia, PPI use was associated with a 1.28-times increased risk of in-hospital mortality, 5.89-times increased risk of GIB, and 1.32-times increased risk of pneumonia. Conclusions Among critically ill adult patients with sepsis at risk for GIB, SUP with PPIs was associated with higher in-hospital mortality and higher risk of GIB and pneumonia than H2Bs.

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Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes by Degree of Maternal Serum Analyte Elevation: A Retrospective Cohort Study

American Journal of Perinatology Reports ◽

10.1055/s-0040-1716741 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (04) ◽

pp. e369-e379

Author(s):

Amanda Yeaton-Massey ◽

Rebecca J. Baer ◽

Larry Rand ◽

Laura L. Jelliffe-Pawlowski ◽

Deirdre J. Lyell

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Screening Program ◽

Maternal Serum ◽

Obstetric Complication ◽

Patient Counseling ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Antenatal Management ◽

Adverse Pregnancy

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate rates of preterm birth (PTB) and obstetric complication with maternal serum analytes > 2.5 multiples of the median (MoM) by degree of elevation. Study Design Retrospective cohort study of singleton live-births participating in the California Prenatal Screening Program (2005–2011) examining PTB and obstetric complication for α-fetoprotein (AFP), human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), unconjugated estriol (uE3), and inhibin A (INH) by analyte subgroup (2.5 to < 6.0, 6.0 to < 10.0, and ≥ 10.0 MoM vs. < 2.5 MoM). Results The risk of obstetric complication increased with increasing hCG, AFP, and INH MoM, and were greatest for AFP and INH of 6.0 to <10.0 MoM. The greatest risk of any adverse outcome was seen for hCG MoM ≥ 10.0, with relative risk (RR) of PTB < 34 weeks of 40.8 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 21.7–77.0) and 13.8 (95% CI: 8.2–23.1) for obstetric complication. Conclusions In euploid, structurally normal fetuses, all analyte elevations > 2.5 MoM confer an increased risk of PTB and, except for uE3, obstetric complication, and risks for each are not uniformly linear. These data can help guide patient counseling and antenatal management.

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Colorectal Cancer Risk in Women with Gynecologic Cancers—A Population Retrospective Cohort Study

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10143127 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (14) ◽

pp. 3127

Author(s):

Szu-Chia Liao ◽

Hong-Zen Yeh ◽

Chi-Sen Chang ◽

Wei-Chih Chen ◽

Chih-Hsin Muo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Colorectal Cancer ◽

Ovarian Cancer ◽

Cervical Cancer ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Cancer Patients ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Gynecologic Cancer ◽

Ovarian Cancers ◽

Increased Risk

We conducted a retrospective cohort study to evaluate the subsequent colorectal cancer (CRC) risk for women with gynecologic malignancy using insurance claims data of Taiwan. We identified patients who survived cervical cancer (N = 25,370), endometrial cancer (N = 8149) and ovarian cancer (N = 7933) newly diagnosed from 1998 to 2010, and randomly selected comparisons (N = 165,808) without cancer, matched by age and diagnosis date. By the end of 2011, the incidence and hazard ratio (HR) of CRC were estimated. We found that CRC incidence rates were 1.26-, 2.20-, and 1.61-fold higher in women with cervical, endometrial and ovarian cancers, respectively, than in comparisons (1.09/1000 person–years). The CRC incidence increased with age. Higher adjusted HRs of CRC appeared within 3 years for women with endometrial and ovarian cancers, but not until the 4th to 7th years of follow up for cervical cancer survivals. Cancer treatments could reduce CRC risks, but not significantly. However, ovarian cancer patients receiving surgery alone had an incidence of 3.33/1000 person–years for CRC with an adjusted HR of 3.79 (95% CI 1.11–12.9) compared to patients without any treatment. In conclusion, gynecologic cancer patients are at an increased risk of developing CRC, sooner for those with endometrial or ovarian cancer than those with cervical cancer.

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Pioglitazone use and Parkinson’s disease: a retrospective cohort study in Taiwan

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2018-023302 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (8) ◽

pp. e023302 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Hsiu-Feng Wu ◽

Li-Ting Kao ◽

Jui-Hu Shih ◽

Hui-Han Kao ◽

Yu-Ching Chou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parkinson’S Disease ◽

Parkinson's Disease ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Asian Population ◽

Secondary Outcome ◽

Study Cohort ◽

Patients With Diabetes

ObjectivesMany researchers have expected pioglitazone to serve as an effective neuroprotective agent against Parkinson’s disease (PD). Therefore, we conducted this cohort study to investigate the association between pioglitazone use and PD by using a large Asian population-based dataset in Taiwan.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingTaiwan.Participants7906 patients with diabetes who had received pioglitazone were defined as the study cohort, and 7906 matched patients with diabetes who had not received pioglitazone were defined as the comparison cohort.Primary and secondary outcome measuresWe tracked each patient individually over a 5-year follow-up period to identify those diagnosed as having PD during this period. We performed Cox proportional hazard regression analyses to evaluate the HRs for PD between the study and comparison cohorts.ResultsThe findings indicated that among the sampled patients, PD occurred in 257 (1.63%): 119 (1.51%) pioglitazone users and 138 (1.75%) non-users. The adjusted HR for PD within the follow-up period was 0.90 (95% CI: 0.68 to 1.18) in the patients who had received pioglitazone compared with the matched patients who had not received pioglitazone. Moreover, this study revealed that pioglitazone use was not associated with PD incidence in men (HR: 1.06, 95% CI: 0.71 to 1.59) or women (HR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.61 to 1.15).ConclusionsThis study did not find the relationship between pioglitazone use and PD incidence, regardless of sex, among an Asian population of patients with diabetes.

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A foodborne outbreak of gastroenteritis caused by Norovirus and Bacillus cereus at a university in the Shunyi District of Beijing, China 2018: a retrospective cohort study

BMC Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1186/s12879-019-4570-6 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Dongwan Chen ◽

Yongjin Li ◽

Jinchang Lv ◽

Xiufeng Liu ◽

Peng Gao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

High Risk ◽

Bacillus Cereus ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Rice Flour ◽

School Canteen ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Rectal Swabs ◽

Beijing China

Abstract Background On September 4, 2018, a boarding school in the Shunyi District of Beijing, China reported an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis. At least 209 suspected students caused of diarrhea and vomiting. The case was investigated, and control measures were taken to prevent further spread. Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted among the school students and staff in order to test hypothesis that high risk of food served at the school canteen. We collected information on demographics, refectory records, person to person transmission by uniform epidemiological questionnaire. Risk ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. Stool specimens of cases and canteen employees, retained food, water, and environmental swabs were investigated by laboratory analysis. Results We identified 209 cases (including 28 laboratory-confirmed cases) which occurred from August 29 to September 10. All cases were students, and the average age was 20, 52% were male. The outbreak lasted for 13 days, and peaked on September 5. Consumption of Drinks stall and Rice flour stall on September 1 (RR:3.4, 95%CI:1.5–7.8, and RR:7.6, 95%CI:2.8–20.2), Rice flour stall and Fish meal stall on September 2 (RR:4.0, 95%CI:1.2–13.6, and RR:4.6, 95%CI:1.7–12.5), muslim meal stall on September 4 (RR:2.7, 95%CI:1.3–5.4), Barbeque stall on September 5 (RR:3.0, 95%CI:1.2–7.0) were independently associated with increased risk of disease within the following 2 days. Among 35 specimens of rectal swabs or feces from students, 28 specimens were positive. Norovirus GI.6 alone was detected in 23 specimens, Bacillus cereus alone in 3 specimens and both norovirus GI.6 and Bacillus cereus in 2 specimens. Ten specimens of rectal swabs from canteen employees were positive for norovirus GI, and 2 specimens were positive for Bacillus cereus. Four retained food specimens were positive for Bacillus cereus, and environmental samples were negative for any viruses or bacteria. Conclusion Our investigation indicated that canteen employees were infected by two pathogens (norovirus and Bacillus cereus) and transmission may have been possible due to unhygienic practices. Student consumption of food or drink at high-risk stalls was determined as the probable cause of the outbreak.

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Antidepressant use in late gestation and risk of postpartum haemorrhage: a retrospective cohort study

BJOG An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology ◽

10.1111/1471-0528.13612 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 123 (12) ◽

pp. 1929-1936 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

LE Grzeskowiak ◽

R McBain ◽

GA Dekker ◽

VL Clifton

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Postpartum Haemorrhage ◽

Late Gestation ◽

Antidepressant Use

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Association between acute psychiatric bed availability in the Veterans Health Administration and veteran suicide risk: a retrospective cohort study

BMJ Quality & Safety ◽

10.1136/bmjqs-2020-012975 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. bmjqs-2020-012975

Author(s):

Peter J Kaboli ◽

Matthew R Augustine ◽

Bjarni Haraldsson ◽

Nicholas M Mohr ◽

M Bryant Howren ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort Study ◽

Retrospective Cohort ◽

Suicide Risk ◽

Veterans Health Administration ◽

Veterans Health ◽

Health Administration ◽

Bed Occupancy ◽

Increased Risk

BackgroundVeteran suicides have increased despite mental health investments by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).ObjectiveTo examine relationships between suicide and acute inpatient psychiatric bed occupancy and other community, hospital and patient factors.MethodsRetrospective cohort study using administrative and publicly available data for contextual community factors. The study sample included all veterans enrolled in VHA primary care in 2011–2016 associated with 111 VHA hospitals with acute inpatient psychiatric units. Acute psychiatric bed occupancy, as a measure of access to care, was the main exposure of interest and was categorised by quarter as per cent occupied using thresholds of ≤85%, 85.1%–90%, 90.1%–95% and >95%. Hospital-level analyses were conducted using generalised linear mixed models with random intercepts for hospital, modelling number of suicides by quarter with a negative binomial distribution.ResultsFrom 2011 to 2016, the national incidence of suicide among enrolled veterans increased from 39.7 to 41.6 per 100 000 person-years. VHA psychiatric bed occupancy decreased from a mean of 68.2% (IQR 56.5%–82.2%) to 65.4% (IQR 53.9%–79.9%). VHA hospitals with the highest occupancy (>95%) in a quarter compared with ≤85% had an adjusted incident rate ratio (IRR) for suicide of 1.10 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.19); no increased risk was observed for 85.1%–90% (IRR 0.96; 95% CI 0.89 to 1.03) or 90.1%–95% (IRR 0.96; 95% CI 0.89 to 1.04) compared with ≤85% occupancy. Of hospital and community variables, suicide risk was not associated with number of VHA or non-VHA psychiatric beds or amount spent on community mental health. Suicide risk increased by age categories, seasons, geographic regions and over time.ConclusionsHigh VHA hospital occupancy (>95%) was associated with a 10% increased suicide risk for veterans whereas absolute number of beds was not, suggesting occupancy is an important access measure. Future work should clarify optimal bed occupancy to meet acute psychiatric needs and ensure adequate bed distribution.

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