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Obstructive sleep apnea and the risk of preterm delivery

  • Epidemiology • Original Article
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Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to preterm delivery (PTD), using the Berlin Questionnaire (BQ).

Methods

This was a large, prospective cohort study among pregnant Thai women. The BQ was employed for symptom-based OSA screening during the second trimester, and PTD was recorded in 1345 pregnant women. Multivariate models were applied in controlling for potential confounders.

Results

The overall prevalence of the high risk of OSA was 10.1 %, and it was significantly associated with pre-pregnancy body mass index and score on the Perceived Stress Scale. An adjusted odds ratio for PTD in women with a high risk of OSA was 2.00 (95 % confidence intervals (CIs) = 1.20, 3.34). Stratified analyses, after adjusting for confounding factors, indicated that a high risk of OSA was associated with an increased risk of spontaneous preterm delivery (odds ratio (OR) = 2.45, 95 % CI = 1.20, 5.02), but not with preterm premature rupture of membranes (OR = 1.61, 95 % CI = 0.61, 4.26), and medically indicated preterm delivery (OR = 1.83, 95 % CI = 0.72, 4.64).

Conclusion

Pregnant women with a high risk of OSA are at an increased risk of having PTD, compared with pregnant women with a low risk of OSA.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all the staff of the Research Center of Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital for their assistance in data collection.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

    Kunyalak Na-rungsri, Somrat Lertmaharit & Vitool Lohsoonthorn

  2. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, Amphur Muang, Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand

    Kunyalak Na-rungsri

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, Amphur Muang, Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand

    Surachart Totienchai

  4. Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

    Nattapong Jaimchariyatam

  5. Excellence Center for Sleep Disorders, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, 1873 Rama IV Road, Phathumwan, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand

    Nattapong Jaimchariyatam

Authors
  1. Kunyalak Na-rungsri
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  2. Somrat Lertmaharit
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nattapong Jaimchariyatam.

Ethics declarations

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Funding

This study was supported by grants from the 90th Anniversary of Chulalongkorn University Fund (Ratchadaphiseksomphot Endowment Fund) and Ratchadaphiseksomphot Fund (RA 57/001), Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. The funders had no role in the design or conduct of this research.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Na-rungsri, K., Lertmaharit, S., Lohsoonthorn, V. et al. Obstructive sleep apnea and the risk of preterm delivery. Sleep Breath 20, 1111–1117 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-016-1339-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-016-1339-7

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