Induction With Foley OR Misoprostol (INFORM) Study (INFORM)

December 11, 2015 updated by: Andrew Weeks MD MRCOG, University of Liverpool

Induction of Labour in Pre-eclamptic Women: a Randomised Trial Comparing the Foley Balloon Catheter With Oral Misoprostol

Between 40,000 and 80,000 pregnant women die annually from pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. Magnesium sulphate and anti-hypertensive therapies can reduce the morbidity associated with pre-eclampsia. The only cure, however, comes with delivery. Prompt delivery of the baby, preferably by vaginal route, is vital in order to achieve good maternal and neonatal outcomes. Induction of labour is therefore a critical intervention in order to prevent morbidity to both mother and baby. Two low cost interventions - oral misoprostol tablets and transcervical Foley catheterization - are already used by some in low resource settings, but their relative risks and benefits are not known. These interventions could optimize the care pathway for women needing induction of labour. This is especially important in low resource settings where improvement is most needed and the potential to reduce the maternal and neonatal mortality and morbidity is the greatest. The ideal induction agent would result in a relatively short induction to delivery interval without risk to fetus and with low rates of emergency caesarean section. The induction to delivery interval is especially important in pre-eclampsia and eclampsia where the condition may deteriorate rapidly until delivery. Inductions with prostaglandins, including misoprostol, are sometimes associated with uterine hyperstimulation and consequent fetal hypoxia, whilst the effectiveness and safety of Foley catheter as an induction agent has been persistently questioned. This study will identify the risk, benefits and trade-offs in efficacy, safety, acceptability and cost of these two low cost induction methods.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

This is a pragmatic, open-label, randomised control trial of two methods for labour induction among women with pre-eclampsia. Women requiring delivery for preeclampsia in two hospitals in Nagpur, India will be randomised to one of two treatment groups: transcervical Foley catheter or oral misoprostol tablets.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

602

Phase

  • Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

      • Nagpur, India
        • Government Medical College (GMC)
    • Maharashtra
      • Nagpur, Maharashtra, India
        • Daga Memorial Women's Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

14 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Ongoing pregnancies with a live fetus in whom the decision has been made to induce vaginal delivery because of preeclampsia or uncontrolled hypertension. Women will be included irrespective of whether an intrapartum caesarean section on fetal grounds or would be considered or not.
  • Women age ≥18 years
  • Signed informed consent form

Exclusion Criteria:

  • • Women with previous caesarean sections

    • Those unable to give informed consent
    • Multiple pregnancy
    • History of allergy to misoprostol
    • Ruptured membranes
    • Chorioamnionitis (by clinical diagnosis)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Misoprostol
Group 2 will be induced using oral misoprostol tablets (25 mcg) every 2 hours for a maximum of 12 doses or until active labour commences. In primigravid women, if contractions have not commenced after 2 doses, the dosage may be increased to 50mcg every 2 hours. Once in labour (regular painful contractions with a cervical dilatation of at least 4cm) no more misoprostol will be used and artificial membrane rupture and/or oxytocin infusion will be used as clinically indicated. If labour has still not commenced after 24 hours, they will be deemed to have a 'failed induction' and the decision on further management will be made by the clinical team (their choice could include the use of repeat misoprostol, Foley catheter, dinoprostone, caesarean section or delay as deemed appropriate).
25mcg every 2 hours for maximum of 12 doses
Other Names:
  • Cytotec
Active Comparator: Foley Catheter
Group 1 will undergo induction using a transcervical Foley catheter (silicone, size 18F with 30ml balloon) which will remain until active labour starts, the Foley catheter falls out, or 12 hours have elapsed. If the Foley catheter falls out within 12h, membranes will be ruptured and/or oxytocin infusion started. If the Foley catheter does not fall out within 12h, it will be removed at 12h and oxytocin commenced with an artificial rupture of membrane when possible. If labour has still not commenced after 24 hours, they will be deemed to have a 'failed induction' and the decision on further management will be made by the clinical team (their choice could include the use of misoprostol, repeat Foley catheter, dinoprostone, caesarean section or delay as deemed appropriate).
Transcervical Foley catheter (silicone, size 18F with 30ml balloon)
Other Names:
  • Cervical ripening balloon, balloon catheter

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Attainment of vaginal delivery within 24 hours.
Time Frame: 24 hours
24 hours

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Andrew D Weeks, MD FRCOG, University of Liverpool

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

December 1, 2013

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2015

Study Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2015

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 14, 2013

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 27, 2013

First Posted (Estimate)

February 28, 2013

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

December 14, 2015

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 11, 2015

Last Verified

December 1, 2015

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Pre-eclampsia

Clinical Trials on Misoprostol

Subscribe