A pilot study to assess the adequacy of the Brigham 20 Kit for cesarean delivery

Objective: To determine whether a kit of only 20 instruments could be used to perform cesarean deliveries in a consistently safe manner for the purpose of providing better surgical instruments to healthcare providers in limited-resource environments. Methods: In a small pilot study, 10 obstetricians in 2 hospitals in Boston, USA, used and evaluated the adequacy of the Brigham 20 Kit for cesarean delivery among 10 women. Results: On average, the obstetricians rated the Brigham 20 Kit 8.7 out of 10 for adequacy and made some minor suggestions regarding the kit's instrumentation configuration. Conclusion: The limited-instrument Brigham 20 Kit seemed adequate to perform cesarean deliveries safely. Larger clinical trials are needed to assess the value of this new concept for cesarean delivery in limited-resource environments. (C) 2012 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.