Mayo Clinic Talks Obstetric and Gynecologic Health Series: Labor and Delivery
Oct 23, 2025
In this enlightening discussion, guest Rebecca Smith, Ph.D., APRN, CNM, a certified nurse-midwife with extensive obstetric expertise, dives into the intricacies of labor and delivery. She explains the stages of labor, from monitoring fetal heart rates to managing complications like shoulder dystocia and umbilical cord prolapse. Smith also covers essential postpartum care, including uterine assessments and addressing postpartum hemorrhage. Listeners gain invaluable insights into the art and science of guiding mothers through one of life's most critical moments.
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Core Physiologic Requirements For Labor
- Labor requires regular uterine contractions, cervical dilation, and effacement to progress effectively.
- Clinicians assess dilation, effacement, consistency, station, membranes, and fetal position to monitor first-stage progress.
Actively Monitor And Respond To Fetal Tracing
- Monitor fetal heart rate for baseline, variability, accelerations, and decelerations continuously or intermittently as clinically appropriate.
- Intervene by repositioning mom, giving IV fluids, or using tocolytics if decelerations indicate compromised fetal oxygenation.
Labor Duration Differs By Parity
- Typical labor duration varies widely by parity: nulliparous 6–18 hours, multiparous 2–10 hours.
- Most cervical progress from 4 to 10 cm takes longer in first births than subsequent births.