Obstetrics and gynaecology

Background. Multiple pregnancy is a well-established risk factor for preterm birth. Prevention of early termination of pregnancy is a priority problem in obstetric practice. The aim. To evaluate the role of an obstetric pessary and micronized progesterone in the prevention of early preterm labor in patients with multiple pregnancies. Materials and methods. A prospective controlled study was conducted with the inclusion of 146 pregnant women with multiple pregnancies, which, depending on the methods of treatment, were divided into three groups: Group I (n = 67) – pregnant women who received micronized progesterone in combination with an obstetric pessary; Group II (n = 57) included women who received micronized progesterone; Group III (n = 22) consisted of patients with multiple pregnancies without therapy. Results. In Group I, the complex of an obstetric pessary and micronized progesterone allowed to reduce the frequency of preterm birth by 2.3 times (p = 0.008) in comparison with Group III, the frequency of births at gestational age ≤ 34 weeks – by 8.1 times (p = 0.005) in compared with Group III and 2.7 times (p < 0.01) compared with Group II. In 70.4 % of pregnant women, the use of a complex of an obstetric pessary with micronized progesterone made it possible to prevent the formation of isthmic-cervical insufficiency, which, according to sonography, was expressed in the dynamics of the utero-cervical angle towards a more obtuse one. Conclusion. The use of an obstetric pessary with micronized progesterone made it possible to reduce the risks of isthmic-cervical insufficiency by 7.7 % compared with patients who received only micronized progesterone therapy, and by 17.1 % compared with pregnant women who did not receive therapy.