Twins and Preterm Labor.
Publication/Presentation Date
4-1-1997
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of home uterine contraction assessment (HUCA) in twin pregnancies with preterm labor (PTL) at < 24 weeks' gestation.
STUDY DESIGN: In this retrospective, analytic study, patients were stratified by whether HUCA had been prescribed before or after diagnosis of PTL. The main outcomes studied were time of PTL diagnosis and delivery as well as birth weight and need for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission. In 63 patients, 32 were prescribed HUCA after PTL had been arrested at < 24 weeks (group I). Thirty-one women had HUCA prescribed at 20 weeks' gestational age and then developed PTL at < 24 weeks (group II).
RESULTS: Labor was diagnosed at similar times in both groups (22.8 vs 23.4 weeks), but delivery was earlier in group I (27.6 weeks vs. 34.7 weeks) than in group II. The birth weight in group I was less (918 +/- 255 g), and of the 64 infants, 55 required NICU admission as compared to 2,340 +/- 525 g and 11 of 62 infants (P < .0001, .0001) in group II, respectively.
CONCLUSION: Women with twin gestations and the diagnosis of PTL prior to 24 weeks deliver later in gestation, and their infants weigh more and have fewer NICU admissions if intensive prenatal surveillance is prescribed prior to the onset of labor.
Volume
42
Issue
4
First Page
229
Last Page
234
ISSN
0024-7758
Published In/Presented At
Rust, O. A., Perry, K. J., Andrew, M. E., Roberts, W. E., Martin, R. W., & Morrison, J. C. (1997). Twins and preterm labor. The Journal Of Reproductive Medicine, 42(4), 229-234.
Disciplines
Obstetrics and Gynecology
PubMedID
9131496
Department(s)
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty
Document Type
Article