Breathing exercises can effectively minimize the second stage of labor duration, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis. Alwin Issac et al. sought to assess the influence of breathing exercises on labor length.  The electronic databases such as ClinicalKey, Web of Science, EMBASE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), MEDLINE, and SCOPUS were explored to find quasi-experimental studies and randomized controlled trials that investigated the efficacy of breathing exercises on labor duration.

The major endpoint examined was labor duration. Anxiety, pain duration, APGAR scores, episiotomy, and delivery method were all evaluated as secondary outcomes. RevMan v5.3 was used for the meta-analysis. Overall, 1418 subjects were incorporated in the reviewed trials. The mean gestational weeks of people in the trials were 38.9 weeks. Compared to the control group, the intervention group's second stage of labor lasted for less duration because of breathing exercises. Breathing exercises are a helpful preventative strategy for lowering the time of the second stage of labor.