Abstract
Background: Preterm birth is a strong predictor of infant mortality and morbidity, and is shown to be significantly associated with several poor health outcomes. These outcomes include cerebral palsy, problems with vision and hearing, poor motor skills, asthma, and learning disabilities. This study aimed to estimate the effect of premature rupture of the membrane (PRM) and antenatal care on the risk of preterm birth.
Subjects and Method: This meta-analysis was conducted based on the PRISMA flow diagram. The articles were searched using the PICO research question. Population: Pregnant women. Intervention: PRM and infrequent antenatal care visits. Comparison: No PRM and frequent antenatal care visits. Outcome: Preterm birth. The articles were searched from databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and ProQuest. Keywords used "Premature rupture of membranes" AND "Antenatal Care" AND "Premature Birth". The inclusion criteria were full-text paper, cross-sectional study, published from 2013 to 2023, and multivariate analysis with adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR). The articles were analyzed using RevMan 5.3.
Results: The meta-analysis included 18 cross-sectional studies from Asia and Africa. Pregnant women who experienced PRM had 4.12 times as much risk as those who did not experience PRM (aOR= 4.12; 95% CI= 3.27-5.20; p<0.001). Pregnant women with infrequent antenatal visits had 2.24 times as much risk as frequent antenatal visits (aOR= 2.24; 95% CI= 1.86-2.69; p<0.001).
Conclusion: The risk of premature rupture of the membrane and infrequent antenatal care visits increase the risk of preterm birth.
Keywords: premature rupture of the membrane, antenatal care, and premature birth.
Article Data
