Experimental Vaginal Test Could Help Ob-Gyns Choose Best Induction Date

The AP/Seattle Post-Intelligencer on Monday examined a vaginal test under review by FDA that could help ob-gyns choose the best date at which to induce labor and reduce the health risks involved in performing the procedure too early. According to the AP/Post-Intelligencer, one in five pregnant women annually in the U.S. elects or finds it medically necessary to induce labor, which can cause prolonged labor ending in caesarean section if the pregnant woman's body is not ready to deliver. The experimental test, which is manufactured by Adeza, looks for fetal fibronectin, a protein that is described as a "uterine glue" substance. If the protein appears in the vagina from mid-pregnancy onward, it is believed to signal that the body is preparing for labor, the AP/Post-Intelligencer reports. In a recent Adeza-sponsored study of 875 first-time pregnant women in 22 hospitals, those who tested positive for fetal fibronectin were 38% more likely to deliver vaginally within one day of the induction's start than women who tested negative for the protein. In addition, women who tested negative for fetal fibronectin were 29% more likely to undergo a c-section delivery than women who tested positive for the protein. Michael Randell, an Atlanta ob-gyn, said the test could offer an objective, rather than subjective, confirmation of a manual cervical exam. However, other ob-gyns say the test could lead to questionable inductions. "I don't feel this trend for elective inductions is a good thing," Peter Bernstein of Montefiore Medical Center in New York said (Neergaard, AP/Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 6/5).


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