Methods of induction and augmentation of labor in a freestanding birth center: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: To describe and analyze the use of methods of induction and augmentation of labor in a freestanding birth center (FBC).

Method: Cross-sectional study carried out at a FBC located in São Paulo (SP), with all women booked from 2011 to 2021 (n = 3,397).

Results: The majority of women (61.3%) did not receive any method. The methods were used alone or in combination (traditional Chinese medicine, massage, castor oil, stimulating tea, amniotomy, and oxytocin). Traditional Chinese medicine (acupuncture, acupressure, and moxa) was the most used method (14.7%) and oxytocin was the least frequent (5.1%). The longer the water breaking time, the greater the number of methods used (p < 0.001). Amniotomy was associated with maternal transfers (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Induction and augmentation of labor were strictly adopted. The use of natural or non-pharmacological methods prevailed. Robust clinical studies are needed to prove the effectiveness of non-pharmacological methods of stimulation of childbirth, in addition to strategies for their implementation in other childbirth care services, to really prove the effectiveness of non-pharmacological methods in the parturition process, that is, in labor and birth.