Comparison of low-dose oxytocin and dinoprostone for labor induction in postterm pregnancies: a randomized controlled prospective study.

AIMS: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of oxytocin and dinoprostone in achieving successful labor induction and vaginal delivery in postterm women with an unfavorable cervix.

METHODS: Postterm women with an uncomplicated pregnancy and a Bishop score of ≤6 were randomized to receive either dinoprostone vaginal pessary (Propess®) or low-dose oxytocin. The primary outcomes were the length of the induction-to-delivery period and the incidence of vaginal delivery.

RESULTS: A total of 144 women were available for the analysis. The overall vaginal delivery rates were 75% (54/72) for the dinoprostone group and 80.6% (58/72; p = 0.35) for the oxytocin group; the mean induction-to-vaginal delivery interval was 13.3 and 10.3 h in the dinoprostone and the oxytocin group, respectively (p = 0.003). Uterine hyperstimulation was 7.4% compared with 6.8% (p = 0.8), and abnormal fetal heart rate was 26.4% compared with 18% (p = 0.2), respectively.

CONCLUSION: Both oxytocin and dinoprostone seem to have similar obstetric outcomes in postterm pregnancies with an unfavorable cervix, except for a significant superiority of oxytocin for delivery in a shorter period.