'Think Breech' – a UK survey

During October 2010 a survey of all maternity units in the UK will be undertaken by Mary Sheridan from the School to provide up to date information on the number of women with breech presentation at term, and map the availability and uptake of external cephalic version (ECV), a process by which a breech baby can sometimes be turned from buttocks or foot first to head first.

ECV has been shown to increase a woman’s chances of a vaginal birth and its’ use is recommended in national clinical guidelines (NICE 2008). Despite the evidence of potential benefit, there are no national data on how many women are offered the intervention. In addition to providing data on the number of women with a term breech who are offered ECV, data will also be collected on who performs ECV and clinical management approaches, including use of ultrasound.

Units will also be asked to provide copies of clinical guidelines and data on risk assessment criteria and clinical examination to diagnose developmental dysplasia (DDH) of the hip in neonates. If DDH is not identified soon after the birth, it increases the risk of morbidity and need for clinical intervention. The survey will provide the most up to date information on term breech management and screening for developmental dysplasia of the hip.

The survey will be co-ordinated and led by Mary Sheridan of the Florence Nightingale School of Nursing & Midwifery at King’s, who was awarded a National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Clinical Doctoral Fellowship in 2009. The survey data will inform her doctoral studies. Mary is being supervised by Professor Debra Bick, King’s College London and Dr Susan Bewley, consultant obstetrician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

For further information about the survey please email Mary Sheridan.