ReviewEuropean journal of midwifery2021
Evaluating the effects of maternal positions in childbirth: An overview of Cochrane Systematic Reviews.
Review in European journal of midwifery, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- Comparison between kinesiotherapy and usual care during the first stage of labour in misoprostol-induced pregnant women: randomised clinical trial.Revista brasileira de ginecologia e obstetricia : revista da Federacao Brasileira das Sociedades de Ginecologia e Obstetricia · 2025Trial
- Maternal positions adopted during the expulsive second stage of labour in homebirth: a cross-sectional study in a rural Northern Nigerian community.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Article
- Effects of Lateral Positions in Second-Stage Labour on Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes: An Observational Study Using Propensity Score Matching Analysis.International journal of nursing practice · 2026Observational
- Free positions in the second stage of labor for pelvic floor protection: a narrative review.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Review
- Impact of supine vs. hip- and knee-flexed position on anteroposterior diameter and inclination of the female pelvic outlet: an MRI-based 3D reconstruction study.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Dynamic birth position, awareness and practice by midwives in Ethiopia: a parallel mixed-methods study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Birthing positions and mother`s satisfaction with childbirth: a cross-sectional study on the relevance of self determination.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2025Article
- What do we actually know about the biomechanics of pregnancy and labour? A systematic scoping review.PloS one · 2025Article
- The Potential Role of Wearable Inertial Sensors in Laboring Women with Walking Epidural Analgesia.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThe purpose of this study is to conduct an overview of Cochrane systematic reviews (SRs) evaluating the effects of maternal positions in childbirth in order to compile existing evidence for relevant research questions that have been addressed by more than one review, to provide a succinct summary of the up-to-date evidence and to identify areas for future research.
methodsAn electronic search was conducted in the Cochrane database. Two primary outcomes were the duration of labor and birth, and operative birth. The quality of included reviews was assessed using the AMSTAR criteria, and the quality of the evidence was rated using the GRADE criteria.
resultsWe included 3 Cochrane SRs. There was a significant mean difference (MD) found in the duration of the first stage by 1 hour and 22 minutes (MD= -1.21; 95% CI: -2.35 - -0.07, I
conclusionsThere is currently a limited body of evidence to clearly assess the benefits and risks of assuming upright positions during childbirth. The overview highlights the need for high-quality research studies, involving better definition and comprehensive assessment of the effects of squatting during childbirth.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.