Henci Goer

Informed Choices in Childbirth

• Home
• Optimal Care in Childbirth
• Thinking Woman's Guide
• Order
• Talks
• Articles
• Resources
• Contact

List of Articles

See also Henci's blog on Childbirth U!

The Politics of Birth

• 35 Years of Birth Work: Where Are We Now and Where Do We Go from Here? [PDF]
  This is an article featured in BirthWorks International's newsletter, which is published by BirthWorks International
• The Assault on Normal Birth: The OB Disinformation Campaign
• Cruelty in Maternity Wards: Fifty Years Later [PDF]
  This is an article featured in The Journal of Perinatal Education, which is published by Lamaze International.
• Do Childbirth Educators Make a Difference?
• Does It? Really? WHO Admits: There Is No Evidence for Recommending a 10-15% Caesarean Limit
• Humanizing Birth: A Global Grassroots Movement [PDF]
  (This is an electronic version of an article published in Birth: complete citation information for the final version of the paper, as published in the print edition of Birth, is available on the Blackwell Synergy online delivery service, accessible via the journal's website at http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/jnu.)
• The NIH VBAC Consensus Conference: Will It Pave the Road to Hell with Good Intentions?
• Rebuttal to Rationales for Denial of VBAC
• The Soaring Cesarean Rate: It’s the Economics, Stupid
• "Spin Doctoring" the Research [PDF]
  (This is an electronic version of an article published in Birth: complete citation information for the final version of the paper, as published in the print edition of Birth, is available on the Blackwell Synergy online delivery service, accessible via the journal's website at http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/jnu.)
• Trends in U.S. Maternal Mortality: Who, What, When, Where, and Why - Henci Goer Examines the Issue
• The Still-Cruel Maternity Wards

Making Choices

• Dueling Statistics: Is Out-of-Hospital Birth Safe?
• American Obstetrician Takes Rational Position on Home Birth
• Fact Checking the New York Times Home Birth Debate
• Henci Goer Examines If Out-of-Hospital Birth Is Safer Than Hospital Birth
• Making Informed Decisions [mp3, 56 minutes]
• The U.K. Study: Is Home Birth a Reasonable Option?
• Research Review: Systematic Review Finds No Increase in Adverse Outcomes with Planned Home Birth
• Safe at Home? New Home Vs. Hospital Birth Study Reviewed by Henci Goer"

Pregnancy Issues

• Bed Rest to Prevent PreTerm Birth Both Ineffective and Harmful
• Do Very High BMI and Gestational Diabetes Increase the Likelihood of Having a Child with Autism?
• Does Progesterone Treatment Prevent Preterm Birth? A Case of "Skim Milk Masquerades as Cream"
• Outrageous Price Charged for 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate (17OHP): A Blessing in Disguise?

Induction of Labor

• ACOG’s 2009 Induction Guidelines: Spin Doctoring Misoprostol (Cytotec)
• Does Inducing Labor Increase the Likelihood of Cesarean Surgery? [PDF]
  This is an article featured in The International Doula, which is published by DONA International.
• Elective Induction at 40 Weeks? “Decision-Based Evidence Making” Strikes Again
• Elective Induction of Labor
• Elective Induction at Term Reduces Perinatal Mortality Without Increasing Operative Delivery? Looking Behind the Curtain
• Parsing the ARRIVE Trial: Should First-Time Parents Be Routinely Induced at 39 Weeks?
• Preventive Induction of Labor: Does Mother Nature Know Best?
• Research Review: Is Routine Induction at 41 weeks Better Than Expectant Management until 42 Weeks?
• Update on Spin Doctoring Misoprostol (Cytotec): Unsafe at Any Dose
• When Research is Flawed: Should Labor Be Induced Immediately with Term Prelabor Rupture of Membranes?

Cesarean Surgery

• Dueling Cesarean Statistics: What Should the Cesarean Rate Be?
• Whether Women Have Cesareans Is Mostly Arbitrary
• Does Elective Cesarean Surgery Improve Newborn Outcomes in Ultra-Low-Risk First-Time Moms?
• Do Cesareans Cause Endometriosis? Why Case Studies and Case Series are Canaries in the Mine
• Do Cesareans Cause Endometriosis? The Data Accumulate
• Previous Cesarean Increases Likelihood of Future Hysterectomy Complications
• Prior Cesarean Surgery Increases Future Likelihood of Stillbirth

Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC)

• Is Elective Repeat Cesarean Surgery Truly Safer Than Planned VBAC?
• Is Elective Repeat Cesarean the Safer Option? What Does the Research Say?

Labor Issues

• Can We Prevent Persistent Occiput Posterior Babies?
• Cochrane Systematic Review Supports Lamaze Healthy Birth Practice #2- Walk, Move Around And Change Positions Throughout Labor
• Continuous Electronic Fetal Monitoring (Cardiotocography) in Labor: Should It Be Routine?
• Does the Hospital 'Admission Strip' Conducted on Women in Labor Work as Hoped?
• How Long Can Labor Safely Be?
• Iatrogenic Norms: How Fast Do First-Time Mothers Beginning Labor Spontaneously Actually Dilate?
• The Labor Environment: "Many things that count cannot be counted"
• When Push Comes to Shove

Coping with Labor Pain

• Does Epidural Analgesia Predispose to Persistent Occiput Posterior?
• Epidurals: Do They or Don’t They Increase Cesareans?
• Her Survival Was a 'Christmas Miracle,' but the Disaster Was Man-Made
• Laboring Down: Is It a Good Idea?
• Non-Drug Pain Coping Strategies Improve Outcomes
• Research Review: Epidurals Don’t Slow Labor? The Devil Is in the Details
• Should We Abandon "Laboring Down" with Epidurals? A Closer Look at New Evidence
• Straight Talk on Epidurals for Labor
• To Delay or Not to Delay: That Is the Question