Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2014 Apr;210(4):285-297.
doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2013.09.020. Epub 2013 Sep 18.

History of preterm birth and subsequent cardiovascular disease: a systematic review

Cheryl L Robbins  1 , Yalonda Hutchings  1 , Patricia M Dietz  1 , Elena V Kuklina  2 , William M Callaghan  1
Affiliations

History of preterm birth and subsequent cardiovascular disease: a systematic review

Cheryl L Robbins et al. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2014 Apr.

Abstract

A history of preterm birth (PTB) may be an important lifetime risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. We identified all peer-reviewed journal articles that met study criteria (English language, human studies, female, and adults ≥19 years old), that were found in the PubMed/MEDLINE databases, and that were published between Jan. 1, 1995, and Sept. 17, 2012. We summarized 10 studies that assessed the association between having a history of PTB and subsequent CVD morbidity or death. Compared with women who had term deliveries, women with any history of PTB had increased risk of CVD morbidity (variously defined; adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] ranged from 1.2-2.9; 2 studies), ischemic heart disease (aHR, 1.3-2.1; 3 studies), stroke (aHR, 1.7; 1 study), and atherosclerosis (aHR, 4.1; 1 study). Four of 5 studies that examined death showed that women with a history of PTB have twice the risk of CVD death compared with women who had term births. Two studies reported statistically significant higher risk of CVD-related morbidity and death outcomes (variously defined) among women with ≥2 pregnancies that ended in PTBs compared with women who had at least 2 births but which ended in only 1 PTB. Future research is needed to understand the potential impact of enhanced monitoring of CVD risk factors in women with a history of PTB on risk of future CVD risk.

Keywords: cardiovascular disease; death; preterm birth.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flow chart illustrates the selection of individual studies Selection of studies that examined the association of preterm birth and/or fetal growth restriction with cardiovascular disease. Robbins. Preterm birth and cardiovascular disease. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2014.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Association of PTB and subsequent maternal death from CVD or IHD Graph depicts the association. CVD, cardiovascular disease; IHD, ischemic heart disease; PTB, preterm birth. Robbins. Preterm birth and cardiovascular disease. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2014.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Preterm Birth. 2012;2013 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365- 3016.2010.01120.x. - DOI
    1. Mosca L, Benjamin EJ, Berra K, et al. Update: effectiveness-based guidelines for the prevention of cardiovascular disease in women. Circulation. 2011;2011;123:1243–62. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics: Health Data Interactive. Available at: www.cdc.gov/nchs/hdi.htm. Accessed May 29, 2012. - PubMed
    1. Heron M, Hoyert D, Murphy S, Xu J, Kochanek K, Tejada-Vera B. [PDF-633K] National Vital Statistics Reports. Vol. 57. National Center for Health Statistics; Hyattsville, MD: 2009. Deaths: final data for 2006. - PubMed
    1. Risnes KR, Vatten LJ, Baker JL, et al. Birth-weight and mortality in adulthood: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Epidemiol. 2011;40:647–61. - PubMed

Publication types