Prognosis and Prognostic Factors of Patients with Emergent Cerclage: A Japanese Single-Center Study

Objectives. The aims of this study were to clarify the following: (1) how often does prolonged pregnancy ≥34 weeks occur in patients with emergent cerclage without progesterone and (2) the risk factors preventing such pregnancy continuation. Materials and Methods. This retrospective observational study was performed using medical records of patients for whom emergent cerclage had been performed between April 2006 and December 2018 in our institute. Results. Emergent cerclage was performed in 123 patients (median age: 34, interquartile range: 31–36). Primiparous patients numbered 44 (36%). A history of spontaneous preterm birth (SPTB) was present in 30 (24%). The median presurgical cervical length (CL) was 16 (8–21) mm at surgery. Of the 123, 20 (16%) were delivered at 33 + 6 weeks or less (<34 weeks). We conducted logistic regression analysis of the risk factors of SPTBs <34 weeks after cerclage. Three risk factors were identified that increased the risk of SPTB <34 weeks: presurgical CL 0 mm (odds ratio (OR): 5.30; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.58–17.7), a history of SPTB (OR: 4.65; 95% CI: 1.38–15.7), and the presence of sludge (OR: 4.14; 95% CI: 1.20–14.3). Conclusion. Three risk factors predicted SPTB <34 weeks after emergency cerclage without progesterone administration: unmeasurable CL (CL 0 mm), a history of SPTB, and the presence of sludge on ultrasound. SPTB <34 weeks occurred after emergency cerclage in 16% of patients, being comparable with the recent data with progesterone.

Screening vs no screening for preterm delivery in low risk singleton pregnancies

Introduction: To compare the effect of a policy of screening for spontaneous preterm delivery (SPD) by transvaginal cervical length (CL) measurement versus a no screening policy in the prevention of severe prematurity. Methods: Retrospective study on low risk singleton pregnancies examined at 20-24 weeks. Two cohorts one with SPD screening and the other without screening were matched using propensity analysis to create the study groups. Women with short CL were treated with vaginal progesterone and/or cervical cerclage/pessary. The outcomes examined were SPD<32 weeks (SPD 32) and SPD between 20 and 32 weeks (SPD 20-32). Results: Screening for SPD was associated with a significant reduction in the rate of SPD at less than 32 weeks (0.3% vs 0.8%, p=0.001 in the screened and no screened pregnancies respectively) and in the rate of SPD 20-32 (0.3% vs 0.9%, p=0.005 in the screened and no screened pregnancies respectively). After adjusting for maternal age, parity, body mass index, smoking and mode of conception, the screening group had significantly lower hazard for SPD 20-32 (HR=0.36, 95% CI: 0.18-0.75, p=0.006) and SPD32 (HR=0.39, 95% CI: 0.19-0.82, p=0.013). Conclusion: Screening for SPD by transvaginal CL measurement in mid pregnancy may reduce the incidence of severe prematurity in low risk singleton pregnancies.