ArticleReproductive health2012
The paradox of vaginal examination practice during normal childbirth: Palestinian women's feelings, opinions, knowledge and experiences.
Article in Reproductive health, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05545488 (Examining the Effect of Virtual Reality on Pain and Anxiety Management During Pelvic Examination), which is not on this map. Cited by 27 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Examining the Effect of Virtual Reality on Pain and Anxiety Management During Pelvic Examination
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 69 citations in OpenAlex.
- Women's experiences throughout the birthing process in health facilities in Arab countries: a systematic review.Reproductive health · 2022Pooled it
- Routine vaginal examinations compared to other methods for assessing progress of labour to improve outcomes for women and babies at term.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Respectful care during childbirth in health facilities globally: a qualitative evidence synthesis.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2018Pooled it
- The Mistreatment of Women during Childbirth in Health Facilities Globally: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review.PLoS medicine · 2015Pooled it
- Routine vaginal examination to assess labor progress at 8 compared to 4 h after early amniotomy following Foley balloon ripening in the labor induction of nulliparas: A randomized trial.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2024Trial
- Understanding cancer screening participation patterns among first-generation migrants in Germany: a typology based on the intersections of hindering and facilitating factors.International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- The prevalence of obstetric violence against women during pregnancy and after delivery in Syria: a cross-sectional study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Article
- Expert Evaluation of a Medical Simulation Model for Cervical Examination to Assess Progress of Labor in Nursing and Midwifery Education: A Collaborative Technology Innovation.Advances in medical education and practice · 2026Article
- Assessing fear of childbirth in Malaysia: development and psychometric testing of the Malaysian Fear of Birth questionnaire (MyFOB).Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Early onset neonatal sepsis and its associatited factors: a cross sectional study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Article
- Childbirth experiences and satisfaction with birth among women in selected Nigerian healthcare facilities during COVID-19 pandemic: a mixed method.The Pan African medical journal · 2024Article
- Exploring women's experiences during childbirth in health facilities during COVID-19 pandemic in occupied palestinian territory: a cross-sectional community survey.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2022Article
- Identifying the effective components of a standardized labor induction protocol: secondary analysis of a randomized, controlled trial.The journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians · 2022Article
- Mistreatment of Women during Childbirth and Associated Factors in Northern West Bank, Palestine.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Domains of competence in midwifery students: a basis for developing a competence assessment tool for iranian undergraduate midwifery students.BMC medical education · 2022Article
- Quality of Informed Consent Practices around the Time of Childbirth: A Cross-Sectional Study in Italy.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Vaginal examinations and mistreatment of women during facility-based childbirth in health facilities: secondary analysis of labour observations in Ghana, Guinea and Nigeria.BMJ global health · 2021Article
- Women's perception of continuity of team midwifery care in Iran: a qualitative content analysis.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2021Article
- Confronting the culture of care: a call to end disrespect, discrimination, and detainment of women and newborns in health facilities everywhere.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2020Article
- Acceptability of intrapartum ultrasound by mothers in an African population.Journal of ultrasound · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundVaginal examination (VE), is a frequent procedure during childbirth. It is the most accepted ways to assess progress during childbirth, but its repetition at short intervals has no value. Over years, VE continued to be plagued by a nature that implies negative feelings and experiences of women. The aim of this exploratory qualitative study was to explore women's feelings, opinions, knowledge and experiences of vaginal examinations (VE) during normal childbirth.
methodsWe interviewed 176 postpartum women using semi-structured questionnaire in a Palestinian public hospital in the oPt. Descriptive statistics were conducted; frequency counts and percentages for the quantitative questions. The association between the frequency of VE and age, parity, years of education, locale and the time of delivery was tested by Chi-squared and Fisher's Exact test. The open-ended qualitative questions were read line-by-line for the content and coded. The assigned codes for all responses were entered to the SPSS statistical software version 18.
resultsAs compared with WHO recommendations, VE was conducted too frequently, and by too many providers during childbirth. The proportion of women who received a 'too high' frequency of VEs during childbirth was significantly larger in primipara as compared to multipara women (P = .037). 82% of women reported pain or severe pain and 68% reported discomfort during VE. Some women reported insensitive approaches of providers, insufficient means of privacy and no respect of dignity or humanity during the exam.
conclusionsPalestinian women are undergoing unnecessary and frequent VEs during childbirth, conducted by several different providers and suffer pain and discomfort un-necessarily. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Adhering to best evidence, VE during childbirth should be conducted only when necessary, and if possible, by the same provider. This will decrease the laboring women's unnecessary suffering from pain and discomfort. Providers should advocate for women's right to information, respect, dignity and privacy.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.