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UK Wedding News

09/01/2014

'Bacteria Could Cause Premature Births' - Study

New research has suggested that a major cause of premature birth could be caused by specific bacteria.

A team from Duke University School of Medicine, believe that a certain strand of bacteria could lead to the thinning of the membranes around the baby, causing them to tear. As a result, this causes a woman's waters to break too soon and trigger an early labour.

Almost a third of all premature births are said to be caused by the early rupture of membranes.

Researchers, whose findings have been published in the journal PLOS ONE, have claimed that there are high numbers of bacteria at the site where membranes rupture, and this has been linked with the thinning of membranes. They add that if the bacteria are the cause rather than the consequence of early membrane rupture, it may be possible to develop new treatments or screen for women at risk.

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Study author Amy Murtha, associate professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at Duke University School of Medicine, explained: "For instance, if we think that certain bacteria are associated with premature rupturing of the membranes, we can screen for this bacteria early in pregnancy.

"We then might be able to treat affected women with antibiotics and reduce their risk for PPROM.

"Our research is several steps away from this, but it gives us opportunities to explore potential targeted therapeutic interventions, which we lack in obstetrics."

PPROM is the medical term for preterm premature rupture of the membranes where a mother's water break before the baby has reached full term. For the study, researchers examined membrane samples in 48 women who had just given birth, including those with PPROM, those who had an early birth for other reasons, and those with babies born at full term.

It found that bacteria were present in all membranes, but the more bacteria present, the thinner the membranes, especially in women with PPROM.

Speaking to the BBC, Dr Patrick O'Brien, from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, added: "We've long suspected and known that bacteria are involved in a large proportion of these women. What we really need to know now is to understand the detailed mechanism of how bacteria cause the waters to break."

(JP)

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"New research has suggested that a major cause of premature birth could be caused by specific bacteria."