Thursday 17 September 2009

LaborPro – Just Say No!

Some bright spark has invented a totally non-invasive machine that will use continuous ultrasound to measure contractions, progress, foetal position, station and presentation, while having a couple of little alligator clips in the woman’s cervix to continuously measure dilation, and has a little probe that is screwed into the unborn baby’s scalp to monitor the foetus’ heart rate and status.

Wow. this is awesome. It basically means that no one working in labour and delivery will ever need to know anything about caring for birthing women, and midwives will become all but obsolete!

NursingBirth, in her recent post, The WORST Idea Since Routine Continuous Fetal Monitoring for Low Risk Mothers gives a pretty good rundown.

I honestly fail to see how anyone could count having 4 electrodes stuck on your abdomen, clips on your cervix and an electrode literally screwed in to your unborn baby’s scalp (which means that the waters must be artificially ruptured and the cervix possibly manually or chemically dilated), as “non-invasive”.

Why on earth would anyone want to expose babies to lengthy doses of ultrasound, the safety of which has never been proven? Here’s what Marsden Wagner, the former head of Maternal and Child Health in the European region in the World Health Organisation has to say about it: http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasoundwagner.asp

The LaborPro people keep using that “non-invasive” word, but I don’t think it means what they think it means.

Honestly, I think I’m going to be sick.

 

7 comments:

  1. That is appalling. It is just beyond my understanding how this could be viewed as acceptable practice at all!

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  2. Obviously a male thought of this...... how much more mechanical can birth get????? Scary.....

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  3. Grrrrr! As yet more interference is projected upon us!

    Hey I am still reeling at the injustice of my SIL's awful birth when they gave her an epidural while she was in transition stage! Idiots! But she is only 6cm....Um hello, baby is bearing down and does not care! Helllo......24 hours later they finally operate. blehh

    dd3 was born literally 2 seconds after i was measured at 6cm and told another four hours. She kicked me in the ribs and popped out. My theory is go with the body. Same with Z my last one. With each contaction I bore down coz that is what came natrally! He of course was a very quick birth!

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  4. You have to be kidding.They had a similar thing they wanted to use on my second daughter when i was in labor.I said that I didnt want it hurting her.They said "IT DOSNT HURT THE BABY".but how do they know have they had one in their head?As for having wires comming out of the birth canal how could you have an active labor?With the one they were talking about to me 7 yrs ago(just the one clip on baby) you couldnt walk around!
    Having something like this takes away the naturalness of childbirth.Its wrong for strong healthy women.Thank the gods there are midwifes like you around who care about women an unborn babies.

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Thanks for your lovely words, witty banter and entertaining discussion :)