‡ Maternal and perinatal complications by day of gestation after spontaneous labor at 40-42 weeks of gestation

Editor's note:

There are two papers in this section that look at the management and outcomes associated with pregnancy duration beyond term. Arguably, neither of these papers provides any ground breaking new revelations but they do offer an opportunity to assess the state of current knowledge from different perspectives. In the Rasmussen & Rasmussen paper (p 70) much focus is placed on comparison with existing research methods in order to clarify and refine the study and, to some extent, to give reassurance about the validity of the study's findings. The following paper by Greve et al, looks at the same issues but from a different perspective, comparing the two it is a challenge to work out the focus for reporting the outcomes and whether they are any different. One thing that is sadly lacking in both papers is any reference to whether women were involved in the decisions about their care or given any form of choice in relation to induction or expectant management. From the number of papers published on this topic it appears to be of continuing interest, therefore, being aware of current research and being able to decide whether it is of value in contemporary practice would appear to be important for midwives and their role in maternity care as well as for their professional development.

Greve T, Lundbye-Christensen S, Nickelsen CN et al. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, vol 90, no 8, 2011, pp 852-856.