Observational studyActa obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica2025
Influence of instrument choice on fear of childbirth after assisted vaginal delivery: A secondary analysis of the Bergen birth study.
Observational study in Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 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
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Investigating the effect of an educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior on the choice of delivery method among primiparous women.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Instrument selection in assisted vaginal delivery, when spontaneous vaginal delivery is no longer an option.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2025Article
- Instrument selection in assisted vaginal delivery: Reassessing its role in maternal fear of childbirth.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2025Article
- An obstetric toolbox: Important to maintain, to share, and to evaluate.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2025Article
- Influence of instrument choice on fear of childbirth after assisted vaginal delivery: A secondary analysis of the Bergen birth study.Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2025Observational
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.
Funding
Abstract
introductionAssisted vaginal delivery has been associated with a negative childbirth experience and the development of secondary fear of childbirth, although it is less consistent than emergency Cesarean delivery. Whether the choice of instrument influences this, and the woman's preference for delivery mode in a potential subsequent pregnancy, is unknown. Our objective was to assess the association between the choice of instrument during assisted vaginal delivery, secondary fear of childbirth, and preference for an elective Cesarean delivery in a potential subsequent pregnancy. MATERIAL AND
methodsStudy design: Secondary analysis of Bergen birth study, a prospective observational study assessing maternal and neonatal outcomes after assisted vaginal delivery in primiparas at term, inclusion period: June 2021-April 2023. Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire version B was completed within a week after delivery. This validated instrument has 33 questions, a total score range from 0 to 165, and a score of ≥85 was used as a cutoff to define fear of childbirth. Preferred mode of delivery in a potential subsequent pregnancy, pain, and overall birth experience was also measured.
main outcome measuresSecondary fear of childbirth and request for Cesarean delivery in the next pregnancy.
results132 women after forceps, 160 after vacuum, and 139 after spontaneous delivery answered the questionnaires. Overall prevalence of secondary fear of childbirth was 12.2% after spontaneous and 14.4% after both forceps and vacuum deliveries. Compared with spontaneous delivery, the adjusted odds ratio of developing fear of childbirth was aOR 1.63 (95% CI 0.45-5.17, p = 0.4) after vacuum and aOR 1.71 (95% CI 0.43-6.14, p = 0.4) after forceps delivery. Secondary fear of childbirth (aOR: 11.3 (95% CI 5.30-24.6), p < 0.001) and maternal age ≥35 (aOR: 3.66 (95% CI: 1.49-8.81), p = 0.004) were associated with a preference for cesarean delivery in a potential subsequent pregnancy. Severe pain was reported just as often in the spontaneous delivery cohort (33.8%) as in the vacuum (25.6%) and forceps (24.2%) cohorts. Less than 5% in each cohort indicated that they were very unsatisfied with their birth experience.
conclusionsThe choice of instrument during assisted vaginal delivery was not associated with secondary fear of childbirth or preference for cesarean delivery in a potential subsequent pregnancy.
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.