Comparative Evaluation of Safety and Efficacy of Vaginal Misoprostol Versus Intramuscular Carboprost for Induction of Labour in Intrauterine Foetal Death

Background: There are scarce data on the safety and efficacy of vaginal Misoprostol and intramuscular Carboprost for induction of labour in intrauterine foetal death (IUFD) cases in our study setting and geographic area. Aim and Objectives: To study safety and efficacy of vaginal Misoprostol in comparison with intramuscular Carboprost for induction of labour in pregnant women with IUFD. Materials and Methods: This is a randomised control study conducted with total of 80 pregnant women beyond 20weeks with IUFD. Patients were divided into two groups viz. Group-A received intravaginal Misoprostol (200μg), and Group-B received intramuscular Carboprost (250μg). The outcome measures were induction to delivery interval and need for repeated induction. The maternal safety was evaluated in terms of incidences of side-effects. Statistical analysis was done using IBM Statistical Software for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 with p≤0.05 considered statistically significant. Results: The majority of study subjects belonged to age group of 19-25 years in both Misoprostol group (50%) and Carboprost group (57.5%). Majority of the study subjects i.e., 47.5% and 40% had term IUFD in Misoprostol group and Carboprost group respectively. Only one dose of Misoprostol and Carboprost was used in majority of the study subjects i.e., 62.5% and 97.5% respectively. The mean induction to delivery interval was significantly lesser with Carboprost when compared with Misoprostol (344.6 vs 761.7 mins; p