Aortic Compression Trial to Reduce Blood Loss at Cesarean Section
Post Partum HemorrhageCesarean Section Complications1 moreThe ACT trial investigates if manual external aortic compression is an effective and acceptable preventive measure to reduce severe postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in cesarean section. Severe PPH is a maternal blood loss ≥1000 ml at childbirth. Severe PPH causes maternal mortality and morbidity. Severe PPH is more common in cesarean sections than in vaginal births. Routine oxytocin intravenous injection and swift placenta delivery through cord traction is recommended to prevent PPH. Manual external aortic compression is used in other obstetric situations to temporise blood loss and could be used prophylactically during cesarean section until bleeding control is attained. The Cochrane Library stated in 2020 that mechanical methods for the prevention and treatment of PPH, including aortic compression, urgently need scientific evaluation. The ACT trial is a multicenter randomised controlled trial including aiming to include 2232 patients in four Swedish regions running over two years. The trial includes patients undergoing cesarean section. The intervention is routine manual external aortic compression immediately after the baby is delivered and the comparison is no routine external aortic compression. The primary outcome is proportion of patients with a calculated blood loss ≥1000 ml perioperatively or blood transfusion within 2 days. Secondary outcomes are mortality, serious morbidity (for example hysterectomy), surgery duration, hospital stay duration, patient experience, neonatal outcomes, and postnatal maternal health (depression, breastfeeding). If proven effective and acceptable, external aortic compression is a simple and low-cost measure that could reduce severe PPH and improve obstetric care worldwide.
Celox™ PPH for Reaching Haemostasis in Patients With Postpartum Hemorrhage
Postpartum HemorrhageThis is a post market prospective, single arm clinical investigation to continuously assess the safety performance and effectiveness of the Celox™ PPH as a uterine haemostatic tamponade treatment for uterine postpartum hemorrhage (PPH).
REBOA in Life-threatening Postpartum Hemorrhage (PPH) in Uganda
Post-partum HemorrhageBackground Maternal mortality rates in many low-income countries (LMICs) remain high. The most prominent cause is bleeding after birth, called postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). In a recent report from Uganda, bleeding is the cause of 42% of all maternal deaths in Uganda. Large parts of the monitoring of mothers during active management of third stage of labor is aiming to prevent and early detect PPH and take relevant actions. In spite of this and sometimes in referring mothers to tertiary hospitals, mothers will end up in a challenging condition where quick action is needed. A new method has proven successful for such instances, the Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta (REBOA). This is a procedure commonly used for trauma of the lower part of the body but rarely used for PPH. In this trial, it is done by an anesthesiologist where a balloon catheter is inserted via the femoral artery in the groin into the aorta and then being inflated. This will prevent blood from passing to the lower part of the body, including the uterus. It will stop the bleeding and allow for the obstetrician to take relevant action. This is a safe procedure for up to 1 hour of inflation. Objective To assess the efficacy and safety of Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta (REBOA) in life-threatening postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in reducing adverse maternal outcome compared to standard of care in Uganda. Study design, setting and population A phase III, open label, 1:1 randomized clinical trial will be conducted at Kawempe National Referral Hospital, Kampala, Uganda, to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta (REBOA) in life-threatening postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in reducing adverse maternal outcome compared to standard of care. The inclusion criteria are: a) women with life-threatening PPH and a systolic blood pressure equal to or less than 80 mmHg, b) oral consent. The exclusion criterion is prior cardiac arrest. The sample size of the trial will be 210 participants. Enrolment will follow a group sequential design approach with two interim analyses at 1/3 and 2/3 of the total sample size, and a final analysis with full sample size. Utility of the study It is crucial to explore alternative modalities that could prevent adverse maternal outcomes in life-threatening postpartum hemorrhage in Uganda and the rest of the world.
Reducing Postpartum Hemorrhage After Vaginal Delivery
Postpartum HemorrhageVaginal DeliveryPostpartum hemorrhage is the primary cause threatening the life safety of pregnant women in the world and China, and also the main cause of hysterectomy for women giving birth. The management of postpartum hemorrhage necessitates a coordinated multidisciplinary approach but limited available data on this issue. This program aims to evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of the integrated strategies, on postpartum hemorrhage after vaginal delivery and relevant clinical practice, in response to the increasing incidence of postpartum hemorrhage and its long-standing threaten to the life safety of pregnant women. A matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled trial will be conducted among 50 maternity hospitals with at least 500 vaginal deliveries annually from five provinces in China. Recruited hospitals will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the experimental or comparison arms. All hospitals will receive general interventions, including: recommendation for implementing quality improvement programs to reduce vaginal delivery complications; trainings on obstetric quality management and clinical skills (3 times a year); and monitoring postpartum hemorrhage rate every month. The hospitals in the experimental group will additionally implement integrated improvement strategies which include postpartum hemorrhage risk screening, hierarchical management and preparedness, rescue recording, and case review. The primary outcome is the rate of postpartum hemorrhage, and the secondary outcomes include rate of consequent adverse outcomes, adherence to all known best practices, and staff acceptability to the interventions. These outcomes will be measured and compared between the experimental and control groups. Both intention-to-treat and per-protocol analyses will be performed.
Use of TXA to Prevent Postpartum Hemorrhage
Post Partum HemorrhagePostpartum hemorrhage (PPH) occurs in up to one in ten deliveries worldwide and is the leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality. In developing countries 30% of women develop PPH because access to a number of treatments is not readily available. Interestingly, the rate of PPH and consequently of maternal morbidity has increased significantly even in developed nations, such as Canada, over the past decades. This rate is also increasing amongst parturients in Ontario. Unfortunately, few effective preventative treatments exist. Antifibrinolytic drugs are routinely used to reduce bleeding and the requirement for blood transfusions in a wide range of hemorrhagic conditions. The most commonly used antifibrinolytic drug is tranexamic acid (TXA). TXA is safe, affordable, with very few side effects. The World Health Organization recommended that TXA be used to reduce blood loss in several conditions, including in patients with established PPH refractory to conventional therapy.However, little is known about the prophylactic use of TXA to prevent PPH.
Prevention of Postpartum Hemorrhage With Tranexamic Acid
Postpartum HemorrhagePostpartum hemorrhage is a significant contributor to maternal morbidity and mortality and is worldwide. TXA has recently been proven to reduce mortality when given to women in setting of diagnosed PPH. US obstetricians and anesthesiologists are hesitant to use TXA in the peripartum period especially for prevention of PPH due to uncertainty of an optimal dose and safety profile. The purpose of this study is to characterize the pharmacokinetics of TXA when given prophylactically at time of delivery. In addition investigators will determine the pharmacodynamics of TXA in the peripartum period.
Novel Vacuum-Induced Hemorrhage Control for Postpartum Hemorrhage
Postpartum HemorrhageMaternal DeathThis will be the first, definitive, randomized control trial (N=424) to test the hypothesis that the Jada® System is effective, safe and cost-effective in treating PPH, compared to standard care.
Pharmacokinetic Equivalence of Calcium Gluconate and Calcium Chloride in Parturients
Postpartum HemorrhagePregnancy Related2 moreCalcium is a life saving medicine in the care of parturients. It has many important uses including treatment of hypocalcemia, treatment of magnesium toxicity, prevention of hypocalcemia during blood transfusion (of citrate containing blood products), treatment of hyperkalemia, and others. Recent clinical trials also suggest that calcium given after cord clamping may decrease blood loss in patients undergoing cesarean delivery. 2 FDA approved forms of calcium can be given intravenously: calcium chloride and calcium gluconate. Over the last decade there have been times with drug shortages of either calcium chloride or calcium gluconate. So there have been and likely will continue to be times when one formulation or the other may not be adequately available. Despite the importance of calcium and the frequency in which it is used in parturients, there are no published studies in parturients to determine dose equivalence between calcium gluconate and calcium chloride. In this study the investigators will determine the population pharmacokinetics of calcium gluconate and calcium chloride in parturients and calculate the dose equivalent ratio the two drugs. This will help clinicians select appropriate doses of calcium and provide resilience to the drug supply chain in our era of frequent drug shortages.
Tranexamic Acid to Prevent Heavy Bleeding After Childbirth in Women at Higher Risk
Postpartum HemorrhageHeavy bleeding after childbirth, known as a postpartum haemorrhage (PPH), causes about 70,000 maternal deaths every year. Tranexamic acid (TXA) is a lifesaving treatment for women with PPH. The I'M WOMAN trial is a research study to see whether giving TXA just before childbirth will stop women developing PPH. The trial will assess the effects of intramuscular (IM) and intravenous (IV) tranexamic acid on PPH, side effects and other important maternal health outcomes.
Oxytocin Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics
Post Partum HemorrhageCesarean Section Complications1 moreOxytocin is the first-line drug to promote contraction of the uterus and prevent atony immediately after delivery. Nonetheless, unpredictable uterine atony refractory to oxytocin affects roughly 250,000 parturients annually in the U.S. and rates are increasing. This two-part study will measure the action of oxytocin at cesarean delivery. The first part will measure the pharmacokinetics of a single intravenous (IV) dose of deuterium-labeled oxytocin. The second part will measure the pharmacodynamics of all plasma oxytocin to see how concentrations correspond to the contractile effect on the uterus. After delivery of the fetus, study subjects will receive a bolus of IV deuterated oxytocin followed by an unlabeled oxytocin infusion. Venous blood samples drawn at multiple time points (within 1 hour after delivery) will be analyzed for plasma concentrations of labeled and unlabeled (endogenous + exogenous infused) oxytocin over time. Plasma concentrations will be compared with 0-10 uterine tone scores measuring uterine contraction strength, to describe the concentration-effect relationship. The goal of this study is to define both the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of oxytocin in parturients to help identify the cause(s) of failed first-line oxytocin therapy.