Variables
As primary objective, neonatal short-term outcome was assessed by pH and base excess (BE) in arterial umbilical cord blood from routinely performed arterial blood gas analyses depending on receiving EA or not. Secondary, differences in APGAR scores at 1, 5 and 10 minutes, APGAR score at 5 minutes <7 (AS5<7), admission to a neonatological intensive care unit (NICU) or paediatric ward and perinatal mortality up to day 7 postpartum were tested for an association with EA. Duration of labour, perineal laceration grade III and IV, instrumental delivery rates and episiotomy were compared for descriptive purposes. The following thresholds were applied for inclusion of data sets, as there appeared obviously mistyped or unrealistic values: a birth weight > 500g and <6000g, head circumference >20 cm and <45 cm, pH >6.6 and BE ≥±35 mmol/l.