FIRST STAGE OF LABOUR:

FIRST STAGE OF LABOUR: PHYSIOLOGY AND CARE. SESSION 1 R. NDERITU  A human pregnancy -last approximately 40 weeks  labour usually occurring between 37 and 42 weeks’ gestation (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence [NICE] 2007)  Complex physiologicaland psychological changes occur during the last few weeks of pregnancy, and also during the onset of labour, that prepare the woman for the process of labour and birth.  Labour: process by which expelled through the birth canal the fetus, placenta and membranes are ;  N/B: This process is much more than a purely physical event.  HENCE…  its events can affect the relationship between the mother and baby and  can influence the likelihood and/or experience of future pregnancies.  WHO definition of normal birth…  ITS "spontaneous in onset, low-risk at the start of labor and remains so throughout labor and delivery. THEREFORE  The infant is born spontaneously in the vertex position between 37 and 42 completed weeks of pregnancy.  OR  breech with no other risk factors = NORMAL THEORIES OFLABOR  Read:  Progesterone withdrawal  Oxytocinproduction  Placental aging  Prostaglandin theory  Uterine stretch  Traditionally, three stages of labour are described: 1. First stage: latent, active and transitional 2. second 3. third stage 4. Fourth Stage (the first 4 hours after birth).  All these stages ==encompass  specific physical changes &emotional effects observed in women during this time.  Labour for each woman has its own unique ebbs and flows. Walsh (2010a) describes this as labour rhythms. A. THEFIRSTSTAG