Biomedical subjects

Mitchell P Dombrowski

Publications and source records attributed to Mitchell P Dombrowski.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2003

Uterine contraction frequency before and after successful tocolytic therapy for preterm uterine contractions.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between prelabor uterine contraction frequency (UCF) and the success of tocolytic therapy for preterm labor (PTL). STUDY DESIGN: Eleven centers conducted a prospective, observational study of UCF recorded between 22(0/7) and 36(6/7) weeks' gestational age or until delivery > or = 2 times/d on > or = 2 d/wk in women with singleton pregnancies with and without risk factors for preterm birth. Uterine contraction data obtained from patients diagnosed with PTL allowed comparison of mean UCF both before and after an acute episode of PTL treated with either intravenous, subcutaneous or oral tocolysis. The signed rank test was used to analyze differences in UCF before and after tocolytic therapy and between women who were or were not successfully treated with a labor-inhibiting agent. RESULTS: Of 454 enrolled women, 128 were diagnosed with PTL, and 74 were successfully treated with a labor-inhibiting agent. The mean UCF preceding PTL was not different between those women successfully treated and those who delivered as a consequence of the PTL episode. There was no difference (P = .653) in mean UCF between the week before PTL (UCF 0.60 +/- 0.8, median 0.30) and the first week of monitoring after successful tocolysis (UCF 0.82 +/- 1.4, median 0.27). CONCLUSION: The mean UCF immediately preceding PTL does not predict tocolytic success or failure.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Frequency of uterine contractions and the risk of spontaneous preterm delivery.

BACKGROUND: The measurement of the frequency of uterine contractions has not been useful for reducing the rate of preterm delivery in randomized trials. Nonetheless, ambulatory monitoring of contractions continues to be used in clinical practice. METHODS: We assessed the frequency of uterine contractions as a predictor of the risk of spontaneous preterm delivery before 35 weeks of gestation. We enrolled women with singleton pregnancies between 22 and 24 weeks of gestation. The women used a contraction monitor at home to record contraction frequency twice daily on 2 or more days per week from enrollment to delivery or 37 weeks of gestation. RESULTS: We obtained 34,908 hours of successful monitoring recordings from 306 women. Although more contractions were recorded from women who delivered before 35 weeks than from women who delivered at 35 weeks or later, we could identify no threshold frequency that effectively identified women who delivered preterm infants. The sensitivity and positive predictive value of a maximal hourly frequency of contractions of four or more between 4 p.m. and 3:59 a.m. were 9 percent and 25 percent, respectively, at 22 to 24 weeks and 28 percent and 23 percent at 27 to 28 weeks. Other proposed screening tests, such as digital and ultrasound evaluations of the cervix and assays for fetal fibronectin in cervicovaginal secretions, also had low sensitivity and positive predictive value for preterm labor. CONCLUSIONS: Although the likelihood of preterm delivery increases with an increased frequency of uterine contractions, measurement of this frequency is not clinically useful for predicting preterm delivery.

Cervix Uteri↗

PubMed2002

The preterm prediction study: elevated cervical ferritin levels at 22 to 24 weeks of gestation are associated with spontaneous preterm delivery in asymptomatic women.

OBJECTIVE: Low serum ferritin levels correlate with low iron stores, whereas high levels are associated with an acute-phase reaction. Our objective was to determine whether elevated levels of ferritin in the genital tract may be a potent marker to identify patients at risk for spontaneous preterm delivery. STUDY DESIGN: We performed a nested case-control study involving 182 women who had spontaneous preterm delivery and 182 term control subjects matched for race, parity, and recruitment center, and selected from 2929 women enrolled in the Preterm Prediction Study of the National Institute of Child Health and Development Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network. Cervical fluid ferritin was measured by use of radioimmunoassay. RESULTS: Cervical ferritin levels were significantly higher in women who subsequently had spontaneous early preterm delivery (<32 weeks, mean +/- SD, 37.7 +/- 31.1 vs 21.5 +/- 24.1 ng/mL, P =.002; and <35 weeks, 43.2 +/- 62.7 vs 28.2 +/- 36.7 ng/mL, P =.004) than in term controls. A cervical ferritin of >75th percentile in the controls (>35.5 ng/mL) was found in 52.9% (9/17) of the women delivered <29 weeks vs 17.7% (3/17) of the controls (odds ratio [OR] 5.3 [95% CI 1.1-25.2]) and in 43.5% (20/46) of the women delivered <32 weeks versus 10.9% (5/46) of the controls (OR 6.3, 95% CI 2.1-18.9). Cervical ferritin levels had a weaker association with spontaneous preterm delivery <35 weeks (OR 2.8 [95% CI 1.5-5.1]) and <37 weeks (OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.0-2.5]). Cervical ferritin levels correlated significantly with cervical lactoferrin, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and defensin levels. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated cervical ferritin levels at 22 to 24 weeks of gestation in asymptomatic women are associated with subsequent spontaneous preterm birth. The strong correlation of cervical ferritin with other inflammatory markers provides support for the hypothesis of infection as a mediator of preterm delivery.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Sexual intercourse association with asymptomatic bacterial vaginosis and Trichomonas vaginalis treatment in relationship to preterm birth.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether sexual intercourse was associated with the treatment efficacy or the incidence of preterm birth in two large randomized trials in which metronidazole treatment of bacterial vaginosis or Trichomonas vaginalis did not reduce preterm birth. STUDY DESIGN: Secondary analysis of two multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials in which women with asymptomatic bacterial vaginosis on Gram stain or asymptomatic T vaginalis on culture were randomized at 16 to 23 weeks of gestation to metronidazole or placebo. In both studies, women took 2 g of metronidazole or placebo in the presence of a nurse (first dose) and were given a second dose to take 48 hours later. This regimen was repeated (third and fourth doses) at 24 to 29 weeks. At the time of the third dose, bacterial vaginosis and T vaginalis specimens were collected again. Patients who were randomly selected to receive metronidazole were analyzed for bacterial vaginosis and T vaginalis at 24 to 29 weeks and for preterm birth of <37 weeks of gestation, according to intercourse between first and second doses and between the second and third doses. Continuous variables were compared with the use of the Wilcoxon rank-sum test; categoric variables were compared with the use of the chi(2 ) test, Fisher exact test, or the Mantel-Haenzel test of trend. RESULTS: Sexual intercourse between the first and second doses or between the second and third doses did not influence the incidence of bacterial vaginosis (18% vs 24%; relative risk, 0.7; 95% CI, 0.5-1.1; and 23% vs 20%; relative risk, 1.2; 95% CI, 0.9-1.6, respectively) or T vaginalis (4% vs 8%; relative risk, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.1-3.6; and 5% vs 10%; relative risk, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.2-1.1; respectively) at 24 to 29 weeks of gestation compared with no intercourse. In the T vaginalis trial, sexual intercourse between the first and second doses or between the second and third doses did not influence the incidence of preterm birth (13% vs 17%; relative risk, 0.8; 95% CI, 0.3-2.1; and 16% vs 17%; relative risk, 1.0; 95% CI, 0.6-1.6; respectively) compared with no intercourse. In the bacterial vaginosis trial, although sexual intercourse between the first and second doses did not influence the incidence of preterm birth (11% vs 12%; relative risk, 0.9; 95 % CI, 0.6-1.5), sexual intercourse between the second and third doses was associated with a reduction in the incidence of preterm birth (10% vs 16%; relative risk, 0.6; 95% CI, 0.4-0.9) compared with no intercourse. CONCLUSION: Sexual intercourse was associated with neither the efficacy of metronidazole treatment of bacterial vaginosis or T vaginalis nor with the incidence of preterm birth. In the bacterial vaginosis study, intercourse between the second and third doses had a negative association with preterm birth.

Black or African American↗