Oral administration of prostaglandins for the induction of labour

Prostaglandins E(2) and F(2)alpha administered by mouth were used to induce labour in 100 patients between 35 and 44 weeks of gestation. The usual effective dose of prostaglandin E(2) was 0.5 and of F(2)alpha 5 mg. These were repeated every two hours until labour was established. Induction was successful in 79 out of 80 women treated with oral prostaglandin E(2) and in 16 out of 20 women treated with F(2)alpha