Peptide reference
Oxytocin
Pitocin ·Syntocinon ·OXT ·Alpha-hypophamine
What cited sources report about Oxytocin
Oxytocin is the endogenous nonapeptide neurohypophyseal hormone synthesized by hypothalamic magnocellular neurons and released from the posterior pituitary. The synthetic preparation is FDA-approved (as Pitocin) for medically indicated labor induction and augmentation, management of incomplete or inevitable abortion, and control of postpartum hemorrhage, and it remains one of the most widely administered drugs in obstetrics worldwide. It is also studied extensively in social neuroscience and trialed off-label in autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia, and other conditions, though no such uses are FDA-approved. The summaries below report what individual cited sources state; this page does not assert claims beyond what those sources report.
FDA DailyMed — Pitocin prescribing information
The Pitocin US prescribing information lists antepartum indications (initiation/improvement of uterine contractions for medically indicated early delivery, stimulation/reinforcement of labor, and adjunctive management of incomplete or inevitable abortion) and postpartum indications (control of postpartum bleeding or hemorrhage). The label explicitly states that elective induction is not supported by adequate data, and includes warnings on uterine hyperstimulation, water intoxication, and fetal heart-rate abnormalities.
PITOCIN (oxytocin injection, USP) is indicated for the medical rather than the elective induction of labor. Available data and information are inadequate to define the benefits-to-risks considerations in the use of the product for elective induction.
Alfirevic, Kelly, and Dowswell (2009) — Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
A Cochrane systematic review of 61 randomized trials (12,819 women) surveyed intravenous oxytocin alone versus vaginal or intracervical prostaglandins, expectant management, or amniotomy for cervical ripening and labor induction. The authors observed higher rates of unsuccessful vaginal delivery within 24 hours and higher cesarean rates with IV oxytocin alone compared with vaginal prostaglandins, supporting the use of cervical-ripening agents prior to oxytocin in women with an unfavorable cervix.
Compared with vaginal prostaglandins, oxytocin increases the rate of unsuccessful vaginal delivery within 24 hours.
Chilaka et al. (2026) — Maternal-Fetal Medicine
A 2026 narrative review surveyed contemporary evidence on labor augmentation, including high-dose versus low-dose oxytocin protocols, intermittent versus continuous infusion, and the comparative role of amniotomy. The authors catalogued institutional variability in starting dose (0.5-6 mU/min) and titration intervals.
FDA Drug Shortages Database — Oxytocin Injection
The FDA Drug Shortages database entry for oxytocin injection documents historical and current supply status across multiple manufacturers and formulations and notes its essential-medicine designation. Periodic shortages have been logged historically due to manufacturing capacity constraints.
FDA Drug Shortages — Oxytocin ↗
Merck Manuals — Induction of Labor
The Merck Manual Professional Version chapter describes oxytocin as the standard agent for intravenous labor induction and augmentation, with typical starting infusion of 0.5-2 mU/min titrated by 1-2 mU/min increments at intervals of 15-60 minutes to adequate uterine activity. The chapter also covers cervical-ripening adjuncts (prostaglandins, mechanical methods) for women with an unfavorable cervix.
Merck Manuals — Induction of Labor ↗
PubChem CID 439302 — National Center for Biotechnology Information
PubChem record for oxytocin listing the endogenous nonapeptide Cys-Tyr-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 with a 1-6 disulfide bridge, molecular formula C43H66N12O12S2, molecular weight 1007.2 g/mol, and aggregated synonyms (Pitocin, Syntocinon, alpha-hypophamine).
Coverage notes
Oxytocin is one of the oldest characterized peptide hormones (sequence determined and synthesized by du Vigneaud, Nobel Prize 1955) and is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines. Off-label and investigational uses (intranasal oxytocin in autism spectrum disorder, social cognition, postpartum depression, schizophrenia) are not FDA-approved and are surveyed extensively in the broader peer-reviewed literature; this page focuses on labeled obstetric indications. This page reflects FDA labeling and Cochrane systematic-review evidence current as of the cited sources.