Single application of prostaglandin E2 in a viscous gel for induction of labor at term in patients with favorable cervix.

A single dose of 0.5 mg prostaglandin E2 in viscous gel was administered intracervically to induce labor in 150 patients with a favorable cervix. All but 5 patients (97 per cent) were delivered within 12 hours. No adverse maternal or fetal effects were registered. The method, which enables induction without primary amniotomy, was easy to perform and well accepted by the patients.