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Last updated on Friday, March 16, 2012
(INDIANAPOLIS) - A growing number of pregnant women are easing their delivery anxieties by scheduling induced labor.
Despite the demand, some hospitals are refusing pregnant patients of the option of scheduling their delivery date.
Unless there's a medical reason, the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists recommends that labor not be induced before 39 weeks of the gestation period.
The gestation period for babies is between 37-42 weeks, or an average of 40 weeks, RTV6's Stacia Matthews reported.
However, Dr. Clark Boccone with Hendricks Regional Health said some mothers-to-be are seeking induced labor out of convenience.
"They have friends that had their babies at 38 weeks or 37 weeks and everything turned out fine for them, but there's a lot of data out there that suggests risks to the baby and to the mom," Boccone said.
New scientific evidence showed inducing labor increased the chance of a woman having C-section deliveries by 67 percent, and infants being treated in neonatal care nurseries by 64 percent.
Boccone just wants anxious moms-to-be to know giving birth after 39 weeks will mean fewer labor complications.
"As a physician, you feel you are being compassionate, but you're really not necessarily helping mom or baby by delivering it early without a real reason to do so," Boccone said.
The study also found women who delivered through 41 weeks usually needed fewer pain medications during labor.
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