Rebozo and External Cephalic Version in breech presentation (RECEIVE): A randomised controlled study

BJOG. 2022 Sep;129(10):1666-1675. doi: 10.1111/1471-0528.17111. Epub 2022 Mar 8.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate if a hospital-initiated home-based rebozo intervention performed by the pregnant woman and her partner before external cephalic version (ECV) would increase the rate of cephalic presentations at birth.

Design: A multicentre randomised controlled trial.

Setting: Three university hospitals in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Population: Pregnant women with a breech or transverse presentation at 35 weeks or more of gestation eligible for ECV.

Methods: We compared rebozo before ECV with ECV alone. The randomisation was computer-generated in blocks and stratified by parity. The woman and her partner were instructed in the technique by a project midwife and performed the technique at home three times daily for 3-5 days before the scheduled ECV. Analyses were by intention-to-treat.

Main outcome measure: The number of cephalic presentations at the time of birth. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated.

Results: A total of 372 women were randomly assigned (1:1) to either rebozo intervention (n = 187) or control (n = 185). At birth, 95 (51%) in the intervention group versus 112 (62%) in the control group had a fetus in cephalic presentation (OR 0.61; 95% CI 0.40-0.95). No adverse events were observed in relation to the intervention.

Conclusions: In breech or transverse presentation, home-based rebozo exercise before ECV lowered the overall rate of cephalic presentation at birth.

Tweetable abstract: Home-based rebozo for breech presentation before external version reduces the rate of cephalic presentation at birth.

Keywords: alternative medicine; breech presentation; external cephalic version; pregnancy; rebozo.

Publication types

  • Multicenter Study
  • Randomized Controlled Trial

MeSH terms

  • Breech Presentation* / therapy
  • Delivery, Obstetric / methods
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Parity
  • Parturition
  • Pregnancy
  • Version, Fetal* / methods