Purpose-built instruments for the most critical moments in childbirth.
The Challenge
Shoulder dystocia is one of the most serious and unpredictable emergencies in childbirth. It occurs when a baby's shoulders become lodged behind the mother's pubic bone after the head has delivered. It is estimated to occur in 0.2% to 3% of deliveries, and it cannot be reliably predicted. The greatest concern is overstretching of the brachial plexus, the nerves running from the neck to the arm, which can cause temporary or permanent arm paralysis.
Current Practice
Clinicians first respond with positioning and rotational maneuvers such as McRoberts, suprapubic pressure, and the Woods and Rubin maneuvers. When those fail, many turn to posterior axilla sling traction, a published rescue technique that delivers the posterior arm by applying traction beneath the baby's armpit. Today it is typically done with improvised materials: a urinary catheter or suction tubing, knotted or clamped by hand. That tubing isn't designed for the job. It can be slippery, difficult to position, and not always at hand.
The Rescue Sling
The Rescue Sling is a patented, single-use instrument designed specifically to perform posterior axilla sling traction. Made from flexible, biocompatible silicone, it passes easily beneath the posterior axilla. Cup-like openings at each end form integrated finger handles, so clinicians can apply controlled traction without knots, clamps, or slippage.
Designed for the Delivery Room
Purpose-built. Designed for a technique clinicians already use, rather than a new maneuver to learn.
Secure grip. Integrated finger handles are designed to prevent slipping under traction.
Simple. A single flexible piece with no assembly.
Ready to use. Designed to be sterile, pre-packaged, and stocked in delivery rooms.
Training-friendly. Suited to inclusion in shoulder dystocia simulation drill
Our Founder: Dr. William H. Long
Dr. William H. Long is a board-certified OB-GYN with 48 years of clinical experience in Jacksonville, Florida.
Over his career, he saw firsthand how often clinicians facing shoulder dystocia had to rely on improvised tools, such as tubing, knots, and clamps, at the moment precision mattered most. He set out to design a better option.
The result is the Rescue Sling, a purpose-built instrument for posterior axilla sling traction.
Dr. Long is the named inventor on U.S. Patents 10,398,472 and 11,730,518, and he continues to guide the device's clinical development at Cordova Medical Devices.