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Cervical Gland Area As an Ultrasound Marker for Prediction of Preterm Delivery: A Cohort Study Publisher



Marsoosi V1 ; Pirjani R2 ; Jafarabadi MA3, 4 ; Mashhadian M5 ; Ziaee S6 ; Moini A2, 7
Authors
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Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Perinatology Division, Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  2. 2. Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Arash Women’s Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  3. 3. Road Traffic Injury Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
  4. 4. Department of Statistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
  5. 5. Islamic Azad University, Maybod, Iran
  6. 6. Tarbiat Modaress University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  7. 7. Department of Endocrinology and Female Infertility, Reproductive Biomedicine Research Center, Royan Institute for Reproductive Biomedicine, ACECR, Tehran, Iran

Source: International Journal of Reproductive BioMedicine Published:2017


Abstract

Background: Preterm labor is a major cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality and it might be predicted by assessing the cervical change. Objective: To assess the association between absence of cervical gland area (CGA) and spontaneous preterm labor (SPTL). Materials and Methods: This prospective cohort study was performed on 200 singleton pregnant women with a history of SPTL, second-trimester abortion in the previous pregnancy or lower abdominal pain in current pregnancy. Each patient underwent one transvaginal ultrasound examination between 14-28 wk of gestation. Cervical length was measured and CGA was identified and their relationship with SPTL before 35 and 37 wk gestation was evaluated using STATA software version 10. Results: The mean of cervical length was 36.5 mm (SD=8.4), the shortest measurement was 9 mm, and the longest one was 61 mm. Short cervical length (≤18mm) was significantly associated with SPTL before 35 and 37 wk gestation. Cervical gland area (the hypoechogenic or echogenic area around the cervical canal) was present in 189 (94.5%) patients. Absent of CGA had a significant relationship with SPTL before 35 and 37 wk gestation (p=0.01 and p<0.001, respectively). Cervical length was shorter in women with absent CGA in comparison with subjects with present CGA: 37±10 mm in CGA present group and 23±9 mm in CGA absent group (p<0.001). Conclusion: Our study showed that cervical gland area might be an important predictor of SPTL which should be confirmed with further researches. © 2017, Research and Clinical Center for Infertitlity. All rights reserved.