Effectiveness and safety of intra-amniotic ethacridine injection for third trimester induction due to fetal demise / 中华围产医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To study the effectiveness and safety of intra-amniotic ethacridine injection in pregnancy induction at ≥28 gestational weeks due to fetal demise.Methods:This retrospective study recruited 77 singleton pregnant women who were admitted to Peking University First Hospital at ≥28 gestational weeks, from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2021, because of fetal demise diagnosed by ultrasound. Four groups were classified according to different methods of induction, including ethacridine success group ( n=63), ethacridine failure group ( n=4), mifepristone plus misoprostol group ( n=5), and spontaneous delivery group ( n=5). Those in the ethacridine success group were further divided into scarred and non-scarred uterus group. The differences in general conditions and delivery outcomes among these women were analyzed using t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Chi-square test, and Mann-Whitney U test or Kruskal-Wallis H test. Results:(1) Among the 67 patients induced by ethacridine, the success rate was 94.0% (63/67). (2) Compared the ethacridine success group with the mifepristone plus misoprostol group or spontaneous delivery group, respectively, there was no significant difference in total labor duration, intrapartum hemorrhage volume, weight of the dead fetus, and the incidence of postpartum hemorrhage, perineal laceration, and intrauterine residue (all P>0.05). No serious complications such as placental abruption, disseminated intravascular coagulation, intrauterine infection, uterine rupture, conversion to cesarean section, or puerperal infection occurred in the three groups. (3) The duration between ethacridine injection and labor onset was shorter in the ethacridine success group than in the mifepristone plus misoprostol group [(28.5±12.0) h vs (54.2±17.6) h, t=－4.45, P<0.001]. (4) Among the 63 cases of ethacridine success group, the outcomes after induction were similar between scarred and non-scarred uterus group (all P>0.05). (5) The median duration between ethacridine injection and labor onset in the ethacridine success group was 26.8 h (2.3-66.0 h), which meant 95% of the patients went into labor within 51.7 h and 100% within 66 h after the injection. Conclusion:Intra-amniotic injection of ethacridine is safe and effective in termination for singleton pregnancy due to fetal demise at the third trimester and the duration from drug administration to labor onset was significantly shorter than that of mifepristone plus misoprostol, without increasing the risk of any complications.