Protocolized oxytocin infusion for elective cesarean delivery: a retrospective before-and-after study

To elucidate the clinical impact of the novel oxytocin protocol using a syringe pump with a stratified dose compared with the conventional practice of putting oxytocin into the bag.

This is a retrospective cohort study. We collected the data of the patients who underwent elective cesarean delivery under neuraxial anesthesia between June 2019 and May 2020. The patients were allocated to two groups according to oxytocin administration methods; the control group (the attending anesthesiologist put oxytocin 5-10 units in the infusion bag and adjusted manually after childbirth) and the protocol group (the oxytocin protocol gave oxytocin bolus 1 or 3 units depending on the PPH risk, followed by 5 or 10 unit h^-1 via a syringe pump). We compared the total amount of oxytocin within 24 h postpartum, estimated blood loss, and adverse clinical events within 24 h postpartum between the two groups.

During the study period, 262 parturients were included. Oxytocin doses of intraoperative and postoperative were significantly lower in the protocol group (9.7 vs. 11.7 units, intraoperative, 15.9 vs. 18 units, postoperative). The subgroup analyses showed that the impact was more remarkable in the low PPH risk than in the high PPH risk. The multivariate linear regression analyses also confirmed the difference. The groups had no significant difference in blood loss, requirement of additional uterotonics, and other adverse events.

Our oxytocin infusion protocol significantly reduced oxytocin requirements in elective cesarean delivery under neuraxial anesthesia without increasing blood loss. However, we could not find other clinical benefits of the novel protocol.