“Low fluid seems to be the new “big baby” for pushing for induction. What does the research say about low fluid at or near term? From what I’ve been able to see in research summaries at least, there appears to be no improved outcome for babies, but I’d love to see the research really hashed out. I’m also curious about causes of low fluid (theorized or known), risks of low fluid, and perhaps as important if not more so, measurements of low fluid.”
This is a great question and I felt like it was a perfect topic for my first article for Science and Sensibility. Standard of practice in the U.S. is to induce labor at term if a mother has low amniotic fluid in an otherwise healthy pregnancy. In fact, 95% of physicians who practice maternal-fetal medicine feel that isolated oligohydramnios—low amniotic fluid in an otherwise healthy pregnancy—is an indication for labor induction at 40 weeks (Schwartz, Sweeting et al. 2009).
But what is the evidence for this standard birth practice? Let’s take a look at the evidence together.
First of all, what is oligohydramnios?
Oligohydramnios means low fluid inside the amniotic sac.
(oligo = little, hydr = water, amnios = membrane around the fetus, or amniotic sac).
Not sure how to pronounce oligohydramnios? Click here.
(click link above to read more about oligohydraminos and inductions)