When is the right time to give an oxytocin injection?

When a woman is pregnant and reaches the late stage of pregnancy, she should always pay attention to whether there are any abnormalities with the baby in her belly, because this is close to the delivery period and the baby may jump out of the mother's belly at any time. But when women are about to give birth, some women need oxytocin injections to assist in childbirth. So how long is it appropriate for women to take oxytocin injections?

When is the right time to give the induction injection?

The timing of giving the labor-inducing injection should be determined according to different situations. It cannot be given whenever you want. It must be given when necessary and the conditions are met. For example, the pregnant woman can only receive the injection when the fetus is full-term, the cervix is ​​mature, the fetus is not suffering from hypoxia, the fetal position is normal, and there are no problems with the pelvis. Therefore, you must discuss it carefully with your doctor before proceeding.

What situations need to be stimulated?

Post-term pregnancy: A pregnancy that reaches or exceeds 42 weeks (i.e. 2 weeks beyond the expected date of delivery) is called a post-term pregnancy. Overdue pregnancy will cause the placenta to age, which will significantly reduce the blood flow in the intervillous space and form infarction, which will further reduce blood flow, reduce the oxygen and nutrients supplied to the fetus, and stop the fetus from continuing to grow. At the same time, the amount of amniotic fluid will decrease, and in severe cases the fetus may die from lack of oxygen and suffocation.

Early rupture of membranes: rupture of membranes may lead to infection of the uterine cavity or fetal hypoxia. Usually, water breaking will cause uterine contractions. If the fetus is mature and there is no contraction within 24 hours after water breaking, delivery will need to be induced.

The fetus is too large: If the fetus is too large, dystocia and shoulder dystocia are more likely to occur, so it is best to induce labor.

Toxemia of pregnancy: Pregnant women with toxemia of pregnancy often have hypertension combined with edema or proteinuria. This disease may cause epilepsy, stroke, organ failure or even fetal death in the mother. The fetus usually has developmental delay and may also suffer fetal distress or death. Pregnancy toxemia can only be improved after delivery, so once the fetus is mature, induction of labor can be performed.

How long does it take to give birth after the injection?

Under normal circumstances, the labor-inducing injection can promote normal contraction of the uterus, and delivery can usually be achieved within 24 hours after the injection. However, the labor-inducing injection only induces uterine contractions and does not significantly shorten the labor process. It cannot open the cervix immediately. The entire labor process takes 10-16 hours and still needs to be experienced.

The mother herself is actually constantly secreting oxytocin during childbirth. Injectable oxytocin is an artificially synthesized drug with a similar composition to natural oxytocin.

In addition, even if oxytocin is used, it does not mean that uterine contractions and delivery will begin immediately. Often, labor will not begin until several hours after the use of oxytocin. Sometimes it is possible that oxytocin does not work at all. If there are no other dangerous conditions and natural delivery is still not possible after using oxytocin, the only solution is cesarean section.

Is it good for pregnant women to take labor-inducing injections?

The drug oxytocin itself does not have much effect on the fetus, but if the oxytocin drip rate is too fast or the dose is too much, it will cause tonic or spasmodic uterine contractions, causing the lower segment of the uterus to become thinner and thinner, and eventually rupture, leading to heavy bleeding in pregnant women. It may also cause fetal hypoxia, postpartum infection, birth canal laceration, acute fetal intrauterine hypoxia, etc.

Therefore, before using the labor-inducing injection, you must clearly check the size of the pelvis and the fetal position. If everything is normal and the decision is made to use an induction injection due to simple uterine weakness, a small amount of the drug is diluted in glucose (usually 2.5 units + 500 ml of glucose) and slowly dripped into the vein. During the dripping process, the medical staff must guard the patient and pay attention to the uterine contraction, fetal heart rate and the progress of delivery after medication.

If the contractions are too weak and sparse, you can drip faster. If they are too frequent and strong, you can drip slower. If labor has not progressed or the fetus is in asphyxiation after 3-4 hours of medication, a caesarean section should be performed instead.

Can the injection of oxytocin lead to a normal birth?

Whether a natural birth is possible after taking oxytocin may be a question that the mother herself should ask. Whether a normal birth can occur after the injection of oxytocin depends on the comprehensive coordination of various factors after entering the labor process, such as the descent of the fetus, the expansion of the mother's birth canal, physical condition, mental state, and uterine contractions. Therefore, if a caesarean section is not necessary before delivery, you can have a trial delivery first, and then the medical staff will observe the delivery process and deal with various situations that arise during delivery in a timely manner.