The Association Between Preterm Birth and Prior Term Delivery Complications

Abstract

Purpose: Our aim was to explore potential risk factors for Preterm birth (PTB) that had been associated with the patient's obstetric history and which had not been previously examined in depth.Methods: Retrospective analysis of all women who had their first, term, singleton delivery and their second delivery, between 2013 and 2020. Obstetrical and neonatal outcomes, including the rate of preterm birth in the following delivery, were compared among three different groups, based on complications occurring the first pregnancy: emergency end second stage cesarean, large for gestational age neonate and delivery which required a uterine and/or cervical revision. Results: There were 233 women of whom 77 underwent emergency end second stage cesarean delivery and 156 who underwent elective CD in their first delivery at term, with no difference in the rate of PTB between the two groups in the subsequent delivery (3.9% vs. 3.21%, p<0.72). There were 396 women with infants weighing more than 3.8kg and 5,136 women with infants weighing less than 3.8kg, in their first term delivery. These two groups did not differ in the rate of PTB in their subsequent delivery (1.52% vs. 2.94%, p<0.1). Finally, there were 298 women who underwent uterine and/or cervical revision who were compared to 5,234 women without these procedures, in their first term delivery. Again, there was no difference between these groups in the rate of PTB in the subsequent delivery (2.35% vs. 2.87%, p<0.72). Conclusion: Risk factors examined in our analysis did not emerge as risk factors for PTB.