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Reduced incidence of early preterm birth in the State of Thuringia following an intravaginal pH-self-monitoring
1Klinik für Frauenheilkunde Und Geburtshilfe, Ilm-Kreis-Kliniken Arnstadt-Ilmenau gGmbH, Bärwinkelstraße 33, 99310, Arnstadt, Germany. Udo.Hoyme@ilm-kreis-kliniken.de.
Background:
Effective prevention of preterm birth as cause of serious risks for the infant as well as the mother pre- and postpartum is one of the still unsolved problems in modern medicine.
Method:
The government of the State of Thuringia in cooperation with the professional organization of obstetricians and gynecologists decided in 2016 to reestablish and promote a self-care screening program based on intravaginal (i.vag.) pH measurement to reduce the incidence of preterm birth by early diagnosis and therapy of genital infection.
Results:
Starting at zero in 2016, > 80% of pregnant women in the state had their vaginal pH monitored at the end of 2018 (n = 17.180). This was associated with a reduced incidence of early preterm birth measured by gestational week ≤ 32 (1.46 vs. 1.26%).
Conclusion:
The fourth millennium goal missed worldwide in 2015 as well as the newly declared third objective of the UN could come closer using the simple and cheap i.vag. pH-self-screening regime in prevention of preterm birth, an approach partly turning the woman from being object of medical care to being the subject in self-control of her pregnancy. This is also a well perceived change in paradigm from the perspective of females as well as physicians.
