Preeclampsia, labor duration and mode of delivery

Objective: To determine if there is a difference in the length of labor, and method of delivery between preeclamptic and normotensive patients. Methods: A retrospective case control study was performed using a perinatal database. Study subjects included nulliparous patients diagnosed with preeclampsia, and were compared with normotensive nulliparous patients. Results: There were 1454 controls and 727 subjects identified. There was no difference between groups with regard to duration of total labor. There was a statistically but not clinically significant increase in the duration of the second stage in preeclamptics (35 vs. 27 min, P = 0.003). Preeclamptics had a consistently higher risk of cesarean delivery, even when controlled for confounding variables. Conclusion: The clinical belief that preeclamptic patients have more rapid labors is not supported. Preeclamptics do seem to have a higher risk of cesarean delivery.