Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 26, 2025
A Novel Method for Involving Women of Color at High Risk for Preterm Birth in Research Priority Setting
Published on: January 12, 2018
Progesterone, cervical cerclage or cervical pessary to prevent preterm birth: a decision-making analysis of
Katharina Putora1, René Hornung2, Janis Kinkel2
1Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Kantonsspital St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland. katharina.putora@kssg.ch.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to investigate guidelines on preterm birth, analyze decision-criteria, and to identify consensus and discrepancies among these guidelines.
Design:
Objective consensus analysis of guidelines.
Sample:
Ten international guidelines on preterm birth.
Methods:
Relevant decision criteria were singleton vs. twin pregnancy, history, cervical length, and cervical surgery / trauma or Mullerian anomaly. Eight treatment recommendations were extracted. For each decision-making criteria the most commonly recommended treatment was identified, and the level of consensus was evaluated.
Main Outcome Measures:
Consensus and Discrepancies among recommendations.
Results:
In a case of singleton pregnancies with no history of preterm birth and shortened cervix, most guidelines recommend progesterone. In singleton pregnancies with a positive history and shortened cervix, all guidelines recommend a cerclage as an option, alternative or conjunct to progesterone. The majority of the guidelines advise against treatment in twin pregnancies.
Conclusions:
A shortened cervix and a history of preterm birth are relevant in singleton pregnancies. In twins, most guidelines recommend no active treatment. Among international guidelines a shortened cervix and a history of preterm birth are relevant in singleton pregnancies. With no history of preterm birth and with a shortened cervix most guidelines recommend progesterone treatment.
Related Concept Videos
01:10Pre-Procedural Guidelines for Assessing Blood Pressure
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...
01:22Birth Control Methods