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Sex late in pregnancy does not hasten birth: study AFP

Sex during the final weeks of pregnancy does not hasten labor and delivery, according to a new US study.

"Patients may continue to hear the 'old wives' tale' that intercourse will hasten labor, but according to this data, they should not hear it from the medical community," said Jonathan Schaffir, an obstetrician at Ohio State University Medical Center and author of the study published in the June issue of the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.

The study looked at 93 women with low-risk pregnancies. Half of the women reported having sex during the final weeks of their pregnancies, a higher number than in previous studies.

Those who had sex carried their babies an average of 39.9 weeks compared to average delivery at 39.3 weeks among women who abstained from sexual activity during the final weeks.

Cervical examinations were performed at each visit to the doctor to gauge whether the sexual activity had a "ripening" effect on the cervix.

Schaffir found no correlation between the frequency of sexual intercourse and the score assigned to measure the cervix.

That lack of change in the cervix among sexually active women, combined with the lack of difference in delivery dates among the two groups, suggests that sexual intercourse has no effect on inducing labor, Schaffir said in a statement.

The results do not support a recommendation to engage in sexual activity, however.

Women who are more comfortable late in pregnancy may be more likely to engage in sexual activity, while women who experience abdominal discomfort or pelvic pressure -- possible signs of earlier delivery -- will not be inclined to want to have sex, Schaffir said.

The study was conducted at OSU Medical Center between July 2004 and July 2005. The two groups of women did not differ significantly in terms of age, weight or previous pregnancies.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4966174.stm