부산대학교 도서관

OBJECTIVE: To compare the birth process in nulliparous women enrolled in a structured antenatal training programme, ‘The Ready for Child’ programme, with women allocated to routine care. DESIGN: A randomised controlled trial. SETTING: A Danish university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Thousand hundred and ninety-three nulliparous women, recruited before week 22 + 0. METHODS: Compliance to the protocol was monitored by questionnaires sent to the women by email, and by data from the local birth cohort database. Data were analysed according to the ‘intention-to-treat’ principle. INTERVENTION: Women were randomised to receive 9 hours of antenatal training or no formalised training. Of the 1193 women, 603 were randomised to the intervention group and 590 were allocated to the reference group. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Cervix dilatation on arrival at the maternity ward, use of pain relief and medical interventions during the birth process, and the womenʼs birth experience. RESULTS: Women who attended the ‘Ready for Child’ programme arrived at the maternity ward in active labour more often than the reference group [relative risk (RR) 1.45, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.26–1.65, P < 0.01], and they used less epidural analgesia during labour (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.73–0.97, P < 0.01) but not less pain relief overall (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.94–1.04, P < 0.72). Medical interventions and the womenʼs self-reported birth experiences were similar in the two groups. We found no adverse effects of the intervention. CONCLUSION: Attending the ‘Ready for Child’ programme may help women to cope better with the birth process. Adverse effects are few, if any.Please cite this paper as: Maimburg R, Væth M, Dürr J, Hvidman L, Olsen J. Randomised trial of structured antenatal training sessions to improve the birth process. BJOG 2010;117:921–928.