Effects of Attraction of Vacuum Extractors of Different Materials and Pressures on the Fetal Head During Delivery

Abstract

PurposeIn some cases where operative deliveries are required with vacuum extractor, and obstetricians could choose the vacuum extractor to facilitate the process smoother and safer. However, there is no related biomechanical literature about the influences of vacuum extractors fabricated from different materials and pressures of vacuum on the fetal head. Hence, we utilized the finite element method to investigate the influences of vacuum extractors manufactured from different materials on the fetal head under various extractive pressures.MethodsFirst, the finite element analysis models of vacuum extractor and fetal head were established. The vacuum extractor model was designed as a hemispherical shape and we compared silicone rubber and stainless steel for the materials of vacuum extractor. Subsequently, four different vacuum pressures were applied as the factors for investigation—500-cm H2O, 600-cm H2O, 700-cm H2O, and 800-cm H2O. Finally, we observed and analyzed the reactive force on the fetal head, von Mises stress of vacuum extractor, and von Mises stress on the skull of fetal head to evaluate the influences of vacuum extractors of different materials under different pressures. ResultsThe results demonstrated that different vacuum pressures had only a slight difference of influences on the fetal head. The use of stainless-steel vacuum extractors caused a relatively larger reactive force (358.04–361.37 N) and stress (13.547–13.675 MPa) on the fetal head. ConclusionsNon-metallic or relatively softer materials could be selected when using a vacuum extractor for operative delivery to avoid complications such as scalp scratch, and even cephalohematoma and intracerebral hemorrhage.