OBJECTIVE: To compare postnatal outcomes in pregnancies managed expectantly after previable preterm premature rupture of membranes (PROM) in relation to amniotic fluid volume. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was performed in 92 women with amniotic fluid leakage for more than a week after previable preterm PROM (gestational age 14 1/7–24 0/7 weeks) who delivered a liveborn neonate at or after 24 1/7 weeks of gestation from 2002 to 2014. Short-term (sepsis, intracerebral hemorrhage, retinopathy of prematurity, respiratory distress syndrome, bronchopulmonary dysplasia) and long-term (cerebral palsy and developmental delay) outcomes were compared between women with (n=58) and without persistent oligohydramnios (n=34), defined as maximal vertical pocket less than 2 cm or amniotic fluid index less than 5 cm. We analyzed discrete data using the χ² or Fisher's exact test and continuous variables using Student's t test or Mann-Whitney U test. We also performed multivariable analyses. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in survival rate at discharge (44/58 [75.9%] compared with 34/34 [100%], P=.001) and developmental delay at a median age of 4 years after performing multiple regression analysis (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 70.3, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.9–1,719.9, P=.009) between participants with persistent oligohydramnios and participants with normal amniotic fluid volume. A multiple regression analysis, performed to control for confounders, revealed that gestational age at delivery (adjusted OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.1–0.7, P=.008) and breech presentation (adjusted OR 90.8, 95% CI 2.2–3,778.1, P=.018) were significant factors affecting survival of children with persistent oligohydramnios. CONCLUSION: The postnatal survival rate after previable preterm PROM was lower and developmental delay more frequent in participants with persistent oligohydramnios than in participants with normal amniotic fluid volume. Even so, most neonates born alive after previable preterm PROM and persistent oligohydramnios survived to discharge and were developmentally normal. The overall survival rate was higher than in previous studies. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is defined as glucose intolerance first detected during pregnancy. It can result in pregnancy complications such as birth injury, stillbirth. Fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4), found in adipose tissue, is associated with insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether FABP4 in the placenta and decidua of pregnant women with GDM is higher than that in normal pregnant women, and whether serum from pregnant women with GDM may cause adipocytes to secrete more FABP4 than does serum from a normal pregnant group. We obtained placentas, deciduas, and serum from 12 pregnant women with GDM and 12 normal pregnant women and performed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, real time quantitative-polymerase chain reaction. We cultured human pre-adipocytes for 17 days with GDM and non-GDM serum and performed western blot, real time quantitative-polymerase chain reaction, and oil red O staining. Expression of FABP4 in serum, placenta and decidua of pregnant women with GDM was significantly higher than that in normal pregnant women. Serum from pregnant women with GDM increased the expression of FABP4 mRNA and decreased the expression of adiponectin mRNA in human pre-adipocytes significantly. Adipocyte cultured in GDM serum showed significantly greater lipid accumulation than those cultured in normal serum. Our results suggest that FABP4 is higher in placenta and decidua from pregnant women with GDM. Increased circulating FABP4 in maternal serum from pregnant women with GDM may originate from adipocytes and the placenta. Circulating FABP4 can induce increased insulin resistance and decreased insulin sensitivity.

Vitamin D deficiency is common in pregnant women. Some studies have linked vitamin D deficiency to obstetric complications such as gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes, and preterm birth. Therefore, the objective of this study is to investigate the potential impact of vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy on both perinatal and long-term outcomes. In this retrospective study, conducted between 2017 and 2021, we analyzed the data of 1079 singleton pregnant women with no medical or surgical complications prior to pregnancy. We evaluated obstetric and perinatal outcomes, as well as neurodevelopmental outcomes using Bayley-III tests, Gross Motor Function Measure, or chart review. The maternal serum vitamin D level in the first trimester was 18.2 ± 9.0 ng/mL. Vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/mL) was found in 308 (62.0%) women in the first trimester, of which 288 women (26.7%) were in the very deficient group (<10 ng/mL). There were no differences in maternal age, body mass index, and previous preterm birth between the group with vitamin D < 10 ng/mL and ≥10 ng/mL group. There were also no differences in the rates of gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes, and preterm birth between the two groups, except for the rate of preterm birth before 37 weeks of gestation, which was significantly higher in the very deficient group (adjusted odds ratios [aOR] = 7.78, 95%CI [2.23–27.12], p = 0.001). In the very deficient group, the risk of developmental delay was also higher (aOR = 4.28, 95%CI [1.40–13.05], p = 0.011). This is the first study to analyze the effects of maternal vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy on both long-term developmental outcomes and perinatal prognosis. Vitamin D deficiency, defined as a level lower than 10 ng/mL in the first trimester, may increase the risk of preterm birth and developmental delay in children.