The history of labour induction: How did we get here?

The mean duration of human pregnancy is 280 days but the range is wide, and “term” has been defined to range from 37 to 42 weeks. In the 18th and 19th centuries, labour induction was used mainly in cases of pelvic deformity, before the foetus grew too large to be delivered. Induction methods were unreliable until the 20th century, when pituitary extract, and then synthetic oxytocin and prostaglandins, became available. “Disproportion” was the...