Quantitative Ultrasound Biomarkers Were Sensitive to Postpartum Cervical Remodeling in Women who Delivered Full-term and Preterm
ePoster
Authors: Michelle Villegas-Downs, University of Illinois Chicago Mehrdad Mohammadi, University Of Illinois Urbana Champaign Aiguo Han, Virginia Tech William O'Brien, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign Douglas Simpson, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Tara A Peters, University of Illinois at Chicago Judith Schlaeger, University of Illinois Chicago Barbara McFarlin, University of Illinois at Chicago
In the United States, one in 10 babies is born prematurely. Currently, there are no early, reliable, noninvasive indicators to determine the risk for spontaneous preterm birth before symptoms arise. Nevertheless, women who have delivered prematurely face a 30% absolute increased risk of recurrent preterm birth, making a previous spontaneous preterm birth the strongest known risk factor for recurrence. Few studies have explored the role of the postpartum cervix in subsequent spontaneous preterm births. Therefore, more research is needed to investigate noninvasive methods to determine if postpartum cervical remodeling plays a role in the increased risk of recurrence. Innovative Quantitative Ultrasound technology has shown promise in detecting cervical changes, both in animal and human studies. In this study, we aimed to determine if Qualitative Ultrasound biomarkers were sensitive to postpartum cervical remodeling and could identify differences between women who delivered full-term and spontaneous preterm. Our findings suggest that there are Quantitative Ultrasound differences in cervical remodeling between women who delivered full-term and spontaneous preterm. Ultimately, further research in this area has the potential to have a direct impact on clinical practice, allowing for better risk assessment and personalized care for pregnant women, particularly those at risk for recurrent preterm birth.