The partogram as an instrument to analyze care during labor and delivery

Abstract

Both the World Health Organization and the Brazilian Ministry of Health recommend using the partogram to follow labor. The objective of this study was to analyze the use of obstetrical interventions, the types of delivery, and perinatal outcomes according to zones I, II and III of the partogram. This cross-sectional study was performed with 233 low-risk pregnant women between December 2004 and March 2005 at a public maternity hospital located in the city of Itapecerica da Serra, in the state of São Paulo. Comparative analysis was performed using Chi-square and Fischer exact tests. The practices used in the different partogram zones with statistical significance of (p = 0.05) were: bath, movement and walking (zone-III); artificial rupture of the membranes (zone-II) and oxytocin (zone-I). Caesarean sections were performed on 24% of women in zone-III. The interventions occurred at a timely moment, indicating that the partogram is an instrument that can be used as a guide when adopting interventions during labor.