title: Effect of vaginal intercourse on spontaneous labor at term: a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed at evaluating the effect of vaginal intercourse on spontaneous labor onset at term.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a randomized controlled trial, patients with singleton, cephalic, term, and low-risk pregnancy were assigned to either vaginal intercourse at least twice a week or abstinence. The following data were assessed: demographics, parity, vaginal coitus frequency before and during pregnancy, Bishop score at 38th weeks, gestational age at delivery, mode of delivery, and days between recruitment and delivery. The primary outcome was spontaneous labor onset.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 123 patient analyzed, 63 were assigned to study group and 60 to control group. Mean interval between study recruitment and delivery was higher in sexually active women (15.05 days ± 0.8 compared with 14.17 days ± 0.8, p = 0.45) as well as the rate of cesarean delivery (14.3 % compared with 10 %, p = 0.58), but the differences were not statistically significant. The rate of spontaneous labor was similar in both groups (84.1 % in vaginal coitus group; 75 % in control group, p = 0.26).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results showed that vaginal intercourse does not hasten spontaneous labor onset at term.
authors.affiliation: Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Medicine Department, Centro Hospitalar de Lisboa Norte - Hospital de Santa Maria, Lisbon, Portugal, catarina_castro@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Catarina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Afonso
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.forename: Nuno
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Clode
authors.forename: Luís Mendes
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Graça
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003075:Coitus; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007743:Labor, Obstetric; D010298:Parity; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D012746:Sexual Abstinence; D047929:Term Birth; D055815:Young Adult