Vacuum delivery:

In a vacuum delivery, the doctor uses a plastic or metal suction cup, placed on the baby's head.  A vacuum can be used when the baby is stressed in labour, when the labour is not progressing, or when the mother is too tired to push her baby out.  They can only be used when the cervix is fully dilated and the baby's head is low down in the pelvis.

Vacuum cups are associated with a small risk of complications in the baby and are more common if the baby is in the posterior position.

The purpose of the POP-OUT Trial is test if manual rotation reduces the use of caesarean section, forceps, and vacuum deliveries.

Example of hand-held vacuum cup

Vaccum cup on a baby