An observation-study conducted in the Arnas-Civico complex operating unit of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Palermo, directed by Luigi Alio, found that water birth is able to lower the heart rate of the future mother and highlighted additional beneficial effects, such as pain reduction and greater comfort for the parturient, of water birth. The research was carried out using modern technologies such as smartwatches and smartphones in the delivery rooms and the brand new iOS WaterBirth app, the first app in the world dedicated to water birth, created by Pharma Mum Italia and now available on the App Store. Each year, the Arnas-Civico di Palermo records about two thousand births and 5-7% of the natural ones take place in water. The research team (composed of Walter Alio, medical director of the Arnas-Civico Complex Operational Unit of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Sara Amato, coordinator of midwives, midwives Valentina Ferrara and Sonia Sanfilippo, and Andrea Varrica, graduating in Obstetrics at the University of Palermo) examined 120 women in labor: of these, 81 had labor or water birth, 39 out of the tub. And that's where WaterBirth came into play. The pregnant women wore a smartwatch on which they indicated, with a simple touch on the device, the beginning and the end of each contraction and also its intensity (mild, medium or severe). At the same time, WaterBirth has made it possible to record the heart rate of women to evaluate its progress and any alterations and thus allow the intervention of health professionals, if necessary. All data (frequency, intensity and duration of contractions and heartbeat) were observed in real time by the gynecologist and midwife on a smartphone connected to the smartwatch. In all the surveys, the heart rate of women who had labor or childbirth in water was lower than those who did not. This is because the release of endorphins (feel-good hormones) caused by hot water causes the pain of contractions to be relieved and, consequently, the heart rate is lowered. “Hot water - explains Professor Luigi Alio - gives relaxation and reduces pain because endorphins delay painful perception in the brain. The decrease in pain also leads to a decrease in heart rate. The technologies used in the study allowed us to measure the woman's heart rate in the birth tub in water, in addition to the parameters we were used to with the traditional cardiotocograph ”. The fundamental advantage of WaterBirth for the parturient is that it can be constantly monitored by remaining immersed in the water: up until now, the possibility of verifying the intensity of the pain of contractions directly from the tub did not exist. Today, however, thanks to WaterBirth, medical and obstetric staff can monitor step by step the various phases of water birth, verifying the intensity of the contractions and the heartbeat.The app also allows you to have an average time of contractions (last 30 minutes , last hour, last 12 or 24 hours) and can work even without a smartwatch, giving the possibility to record contractions in terms of intensity and frequency.
