WASHINGTON — The use of forceps and vacuum did not increase the risk for cervical laceration among patients who had vaginal deliveries performed at a large community hospital, according to a poster presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
However, cervical cerclage and induction of labor appeared to be risk factors for cervical laceration in these deliveries, wrote Dr. Reshma Parikh and his colleagues at St. Luke's Hospital and Health Network in Bethlehem, Pa. The researchers performed a retrospective analysis of all vaginal deliveries at their large community hospital over a 5-year period.
They analyzed a number of suspected risk factors for cervical laceration including parity, body mass index, cervical cerclage, prior cervical procedures, induction of labor, duration of second stage, mode of delivery, and infant weight. Of the 16,931 vaginal deliveries performed at the hospital, 32 cervical lacerations were reported. Cervical cerclage was associated with an 11.5-fold increase in relative risk in cervical laceration, and induction of labor was associated with a threefold increase in relative risk, the researchers reported.
However, the researchers noted that they were surprised to find that operative delivery, using either forceps or vacuum, did not appear to be a risk factor for cervical laceration in the study population. In addition, none of the other factors examined were found to significantly increase risk for cervical laceration.