Maternal preeclampsia predicts the development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia

Abstract

Objective: To test the hypothesis that exposure to preeclampsia is associated with an increased risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).

Study design: A prospective cohort study of 107 babies born between 23 and 32 weeks gestation, collecting maternal, neonatal, and placental data.

Results: Of the 107 infants studied, 27 (25%) developed BPD. The bivariate odds ratio (OR) for the relationship between pre-eclampsia and BPD was 2.96 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.17 to 7.51; P = .01). When controlling for gestational age, birth weight z-score, chorioamnionitis, and other clinical confounders, the OR of developing BPD was 18.7 (95% CI = 2.44 to 144.76). Including the occurrence of preeclampsia, clinical chorioamnionitis, male sex, and maternal tobacco use in addition to gestational age and birth weight z-score accounted for 54% of the variability of the odds of developing BPD.

Conclusions: BPD is increased for infants exposed to preeclampsia. This has possible implications for the prevention of BPD with proangiogenic agents, such as vascular endothelial growth factor.