EBB 387 - Doulas in the Operating Room, Risk of Repeating a Severe Tear, and White Coat Hypertension in Pregnancy with the EBB Research Team

Evidence Based Birth®

Rebecca Dekker

Kids & Family, Medicine, Parenting, Health & Fitness

4.3 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 18 February 2026

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, the EBB Research Team is answering three questions we received from our Pro Members! We take a close look at the evidence behind doula presence in the operating room, the risk of experiencing another severe perineal tear after a previous injury, and what white coat hypertension in pregnancy can tell us about future risk.

Each question reflects real situations birth workers are encountering in practice, where guidance is often inconsistent, policies vary widely, and the research can feel hard to translate into day-to-day care. We walk through what the studies show, where the evidence is limited, and how this information can be used to support informed, individualized decision-making.

(06:15) Evidence on doulas in the operating room
(12:53) Participant experiences with doulas in the OR
(14:20) Risk of severe perineal tears in subsequent births
(17:30) Clarifying repeat tear severity and rates
(20:27) White coat hypertension vs. preeclampsia
(27:02) How blood pressure should be taken correctly
(31:10) Research on white coat hypertension and pregnancy outcomes
(36:20) Global trends and rising rates of hypertensive disorders

Resources

See the full list of references: ebbirth.com/387

Learn more about the EBB Pro Membership: ebbirth.com/become-pro-member/

Get the Evidence on: Skin-To-Skin After Cesarean: ebbirth.com/the-evidence-for-skin-to-skin-care-after-a-cesarean/

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi, everyone. On today's podcast, we're going to answer your questions about the evidence
0:04.5	on doulas in the operating room, the risk of subsequent tears after you've had a severe tear
0:10.0	with a first birth, and white coat hypertension in pregnancy.
0:17.3	Welcome to the evidence-based birth podcast. My name is Rebecca Decker, and I'm a nurse with my PhD and the founder of Evidence-Based Birth.
0:25.8	Join me each week as we work together to get evidence-based information into the hands of families and professionals around the world.
0:33.8	As a reminder, this information is not medical advice.
0:37.4	See eBbirth.com slash disclaimer for more details.
0:42.7	Hi, everyone. Thank you for joining me for today's episode.
0:46.6	Just a quick reminder before we begin that registration for the evidence-based birth conference
0:50.9	is in full swing, and early bird prices are available through February
0:55.3	27th.
0:56.3	Now our conference at EBB is fully online so you can join us from anywhere in the world.
1:02.1	We have an amazing slate of speakers and together we're going to cover topics ranging from
1:06.9	pelvic floor health and trauma-informed care to aspirin for preeclampsia and the hepatitis B vaccine
1:13.5	for newborns. Just go to eBirth.com slash conference to check out the full conference schedule,
1:19.5	session topics, and select your ticket option. We also have applications open for equity pricing
1:25.5	through February 27. And now for today's episode, we're
1:29.6	going to talk about the evidence on having doulas in the operating room, the risk of having
1:34.6	a subsequent tear if you had a severe perineal tear in a prior birth, and white coat
1:40.4	hypertension and pregnancy. This episode is unique in that it is taken from a live
1:45.6	training we did with EBB Pro members in December 2025. So the work we do here at EBB is supported
1:52.1	in large part by our evidence-based birth pro members who are part of a continuing education
	...

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