Abstract
The effects of post-term pregnancy on fetal and neonatal survival have been analyzed in 5 596 single pregnancies, including 275 post-term pregnancies, during the five-year period from January 1, 1962 to December 31, 1966 at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Osaka National Hospital. The perinatal mortality rate at term was 0.7% and post-term was 2.2%. The increased perinatal mortality characteristic of post-term pregnancy could not be explained. No significant improvement in fetal outcome is achieved by induction of labour in post-term pregnancy. It would not appear to be justifiable, on the strength of the data presented here, to perform induction of labour solely because pregnancy is prolonged or in the absence of other generally accepted obstetrical indications.