Making discoveries to prevent premature birth
Vaginal progesterone treatment shown to lower rate of preterm birth, neonatal morbidity and respiratory distress syndrome.
Premature birth is the leading cause of infant mortality in Michigan. The state’s rate of preterm birth (9.9 percent) exceeds the national average of 9.6 percent, and preterm birth costs the nation more than $26 billion each year.
Wayne State University is playing a critical role in reducing the infant mortality rate, notably through the adoption of universal cervical length screening by ultrasound and the use of progesterone in women identified as high risk for premature birth.
Treatment with vaginal progesterone has been shown to reduce the rate of preterm birth, neonatal morbidity and respiratory distress syndrome.
Pregnant women with a cervix of less than 20 millimeters have a high risk for preterm delivery. The use of progesterone in women with a short cervix can reduce the rate of preterm birth by as much as 45 percent, according to a 2011 study by the Perinatology Research Branch of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, which was conducted at more than 40 centers worldwide. Wayne State was the lead center in the trial, led by Sonia Hassan, M.D., associate dean for maternal, perinatal and child health at the Wayne State School of Medicine and a professor in the division of maternal-fetal medicine of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The ultrasound examination is simple to perform, painless and can be done between the 19th and 24th weeks of pregnancy. If a woman is found to have a short cervix, she can self-administer a once-daily dose of vaginal progesterone. Treatment with vaginal progesterone has been shown to reduce the rate of preterm birth, neonatal morbidity and respiratory distress syndrome. In addition to saving tens of thousands of lives each year, this screening makes a significant financial impact with an estimated savings of $19 million per 100,000 women screened.
Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering nearly 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to more than 27,000 students.
