Observational studyBMJ open2022
Vacuum births and barriers to its use: An observational study in governmental hospitals in Sierra Leone.
Observational study in BMJ open, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06241443 (The Impact of Simulation-Based Education on Positive Birth Perception and Natural Birth Approach), which is not on this map. Cited by 4 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.
The Impact of Simulation-Based Education on Positive Birth Perception and Natural Birth Approach
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Long-term maternal outcomes 5 years after cesarean section in Sierra Leone: A prospective cohort study.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2025Observational
- A new classification allowing assessment of instrumental vaginal-birth practices.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Article
- Difficulties in Adaptation of the Mother and Newborn via Cesarean Section versus Natural Birth-A Narrative Review.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- "It's complicated…": Exploring second stage caesarean sections and reasons for non-performance of assisted vaginal births in Kenya: A mixed methods study.PLOS global public health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 2 institutions in 5 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesAssisted vaginal births (AVD) can prevent unnecessary caesarean sections (CS). The number of CS is increasing rapidly in sub-Saharan Africa; these are still associated with high perioperative mortality rates. The aim of this study is to define the proportion of AVD in governmental hospitals in Sierra Leone and examine barriers to its use.
designRetrospective observational study of AVD between September 2016 and August 2017.
settingA representative selection of Sierra Leonean governmental hospitals (n=11). PARTICIPANT AND
intervention(a) Data were collected from labour ward records. (b) Health workers involved in labour management were questioned. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: (a) Number of spontaneous, assisted vaginal and caesarean births. (b) Potential barriers to use vacuum-assisted births.
results(a) Total annual numbers of registered births, AVD and CS were 16 833, 631 (3.7%) and 4642 (27.6%). The proportion of vacuum births ranged from 0.0% to 5.1% across facilities. The proportion of CS ranged from 6.5% to 33.4%. (b) The most frequently reported reasons for limited vacuum use were lack of equipment (25/72; 35%) and insufficient training (18/72; 25%).
conclusionsThe proportion of AVD was particularly low in district facilities, and according to healthcare workers this was mostly due to lack of equipment and insufficient training. Implementing relevant training programmes on the use of vacuum devices and increasing the availability of working devices may increase the proportion of vacuum births in government hospitals in Sierra Leone. This could reduce the number of unnecessary CS.
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.