Labor Induction — Oral Misoprostol for Outpatient Induction of Labor
Citation(s)
Alfirevic Z, Aflaifel N, Weeks A Oral misoprostol for induction of labour. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 Jun 13;(6):CD001338. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001338.pub3. Review.
Diederen M, Gommers J, Wilkinson C, Turnbull D, Mol B Safety of the balloon catheter for cervical ripening in outpatient care: complications during the period from insertion to expulsion of a balloon catheter in the process of labour induction: a systematic review. BJOG. 2018 Aug;125(9):1086-1095. doi: 10.1111/1471-0528.15047. Epub 2018 Jan 10.
Vogel JP, Osoti AO, Kelly AJ, Livio S, Norman JE, Alfirevic Z Pharmacological and mechanical interventions for labour induction in outpatient settings. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Sep 13;9:CD007701. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD007701.pub3. Review.
Interventional studies are often prospective and are specifically tailored to evaluate direct impacts of treatment or preventive measures on disease.
Observational studies are often retrospective and are used to assess potential causation in exposure-outcome relationships and therefore influence preventive methods.
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Clinical trials are conducted in a series of steps, called phases - each phase is designed to answer a separate research question.
Phase 1: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range, and identify side effects.
Phase 2: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective and to further evaluate its safety.
Phase 3: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used safely.
Phase 4: Studies are done after the drug or treatment has been marketed to gather information on the drug's effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use.
