Study of the Fluid Intake Effect During Labour

Ingestion during labor is an issue that has attracted the attention of the scientific community in recent decades, with different practices occurring in different countries. However, the scientific evidence of the risk / benefit of fluid intake in labor is still not fully understood. The aim of this study was to contribute with data that allow the evaluation of an eventual relationship between the amount of fluid ingested during labor and the type of delivery, the duration of labor, the occurrence of nausea and vomiting and the value of the Index of Apgar at the 1st and 5th minutes of the newborn's life. An observational study, with a convenience sample of 144 parturient from two hospitals of Portugal were employed. The analysis was based on recording the before mentioned variables and potentially confounding variables. In order to control for potential sources of bias in the study and to guarantee the homogeneity of the sample in the specific statistical treatment of each dependent variable, an observation grid was drawn up for all the participants in the study. Twenty eight of the parturient, the parturient's ambulation, labour analgesia, food intake during labour, the use of oxytocin during labour, the occurrence of postpartum complications, the birth weight of the newborn and the occurrence of birth complications.