Maternal Hormone Treatment Safe for Fetus
November 1, 2007
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Treating high-risk pregnant women with a progesterone hormone during the second and third trimester to prevent preterm birth seems to be safe for the fetus, according to a report in Obstetrics & Gynecology.
High levels of progesterone are produced by the placenta, which helps maintain the pregnancy. A drop in the levels of this hormone is thought to be one of the steps that stimulate the onset of labor.
Treatment with 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate has been shown to reduce the rate of repeat preterm births at less than 37, 35, and 32 weeks of pregnancy, the authors explain, but it remains unclear whether such treatment is safe for the fetus.
Allison T. Northen from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and colleagues investigated the developmental and other health outcomes of 194 children who were exposed as fetuses to 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone in the second and third trimesters. The results were compared with those for 84 unexposed children.
There was no evidence that the use of the hormone impaired development, and there was no link with congenital malformations.
"Overall," the investigators conclude, "this study provides reassurance that 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate is safe for the fetus when administered in the second and third trimesters."
SOURCE: Obstetrics and Gynecology, October 2007.