The Role of Late Amniocentesis in the Management of PretermParturition

Abstract

Copyright: © 2013 Erez O, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Preterm labor and preterm PROM are both obstetrical syndromes leading to spontaneous preterm birth. This is one of the leading causes for maternal and neonatal morbidity and perinatal mortality [1-3]. Indeed, premature delivery has a lifelong effect on the neonates, ranging from severe morbidities near to the time of birth (i.e. respiratory distress syndrome, intraventricular hemorrhage, necrotizing enterocolitis and sepsis) to chronic morbidities later on in life (i.e. retinopathy of prematurity, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, cerebral palsy, and reduces mental and cognitive functions) [1-3]. The Institute of Medicine in the USA has estimated in 2005 that the annual cost of these obstetrical syndromes is about 25 billion US Dollars [4]. Thus, there is urgent need for tools that will assist in prevention and treatment of prematurity.