ABSTRACT
Labour is typically separated into latent and active phases. Women are not in ‘established labour’ until the active phase. There is a shortage of randomised evidence regarding poor progress in labour. The phrase ‘failure to progress’ (FTP) is used in the literature, although in reality in many situations where FTP is declared, there has actually only been a slowing of progression rather than no progression at all. Once FTP has been declared there are many factors influencing management and, particularly in the absence of other clear imperatives such as risk of fetal hypoxia, this should include the woman’s choice. FTP inherently implies an abnormal labour. Its ‘diagnosis’ is on the increase in relative and absolute terms as the caesarean section rate have risen. A variety of parameters have been identified that appear to be associated with an increased chance of FTP, including maternal shoe size, maternal height, maternal pelvimetry and estimations of fetal weight.
