[Non elective cesarean section: use of a color code to optimize management of obstetric emergencies].

The medical team of the Croix Rousse teaching hospital maternity unit has developed, over the last ten years, a set of procedures designed to respond to various emergency situations necessitating Caesarean section. Using the Lucas classification, we have defined as precisely as possible the degree of urgency of Caesarian sections. We have established specific protocols for the implementation of urgent and very urgent Caesarean section and have chosen a simple means to convey the degree of urgency to all team members, namely a color code system (red, orange and green).

Clinical audit: a useful tool for reducing severe postpartum haemorrhages?

Objective: Reducing the rate of severe postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) is a major challenge in obstetrics today. One potentially effective tool for improving the quality of care is the clinical audit, that is, peer evaluation and comparison of actual practices against explicit criteria. Our objective was to assess the impact of regular criteria-based audits on the prevalence of severe PPH.

Fetal head position during the second stage of labor: comparison of digital vaginal examination and transabdominal ultrasonographic examination.

Objective: To study the correlation between digital vaginal and transabdominal ultrasonographic examination of the fetal head position during the second stage of labor.

Methods: Patients (n = 110) carrying a singleton fetus in a vertex position were included. Every patient had ruptured membranes and a fully dilated cervix.