Whirlpool use in Labor?

SmilingBluEyes · Dec 2, 2005

I have no current research handy as tub deliveries stopped where I work, when the midwives left (sniff). I do know they did allow virtually everyone to deliver in the tubs except known GBS positive status (or other infection such as amnionitis) and for thick/particulate meconium deliveries. Dilation status was of no importance; their patients were able to labor and deliver in the tubs at their choosing.

I know there are other hospitals in my area that do tub births; I hope others will come along here with more current information for you. Good luck!

[email protected] · Dec 2, 2005

hi- i just had a baby girl in june and i was aloud to do the whirlpool thing. the nurses would let me sit in it for about 15 minutes every 1.5 hours. i felt great on my back and helped me to relax. they closely checked on me to make sure the water was not to hot and that i was safe. i think that they are a great idea. it gave me something to ease that pains without doing the drug thing right away. i was being induced and was aloud to do it while the "gel" was doing its thing. once the potosin (spelling?) was started i had to stop. i loved it so much! good luck with you research!

Graciegirlienurse · Dec 3, 2005

I have a six year old son and while I was in labor I floated in the jacussi tub for about five hours! I rotated hot and cold water and it felt great. They checked fht's with a waterproof doppler. I do think that I would have dilated faster if I had moved around a bit more. But I did not need drugs, the water was wonderful.:)

here are some protocols and articles.

http://www.waterbirth.org/spa/content/view/72/87/

By the way I work at ohsu and our policy is included in the above link.

palesarah · Dec 3, 2005

We had a jacuzzi and a birthing tub at my last facility. Patients could labor in the jacuzzi but we did not do deliveries in there. The birthing tub they could get in at any point, but most people labored either in the jacuzzi or outside the tub and got in right before delivery.

Generally just about anyone could use the jacuzzi except people with hypertension (chronic or gestational), seizure disorders, multiples, maternal temp or any condition that required continuous monitoring. ROM or GBS+ were still allowed to use the tub. A lot of patients really loved it, and if they got in at just the right time it was very effective. If they got in early, before active cervical change had begun, it tended to slow down or stop labor, and sometimes that was our goal (long prodromal phase, patient couldn't sleep but didn't want meds, etc). There was no hard and fast rule about dilation, we just considered mom's progress. Unless she was already really close to delivering, pretty much anyone could use it. We doppler'd and monitored mom's temp & pulse while in the tub, and checked water temp frequently.

hope that's helpful

VeryPlainJane · Dec 4, 2005

how do you disinfect a whirlpool bath? i can see you can with a reg. bath tub. but with a whirlpool's jets thats a lot of pipes that water and gunk go threw.

palesarah · Dec 4, 2005

how do you disinfect a whirlpool bath? i can see you can with a reg. bath tub. but with a whirlpool's jets thats a lot of pipes that water and gunk go threw.

that's exactly why we didn't do deliveries in the jacuzzi tub, lol. the housekeepers had to come up and clean it after each use, they used some special solution and ran the jets for a period of time to clean all the germies out. they hated having to come clean the jacuzzi!

malibu03 · Dec 5, 2005

how do you disinfect a whirlpool bath? i can see you can with a reg. bath tub. but with a whirlpool's jets thats a lot of pipes that water and gunk go threw.

our whirlpool doesn't have the jets powered by re-circulated water. the jets are all air powered, much cleaner.