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
. 2022 Mar 22;22(1):234.
doi: 10.1186/s12884-022-04552-y.

The role of maternal age on the risk of preterm birth among singletons and multiples: a retrospective cohort study in Lombardy, Norther Italy

Giovanna Esposito  1 , Paola Agnese Mauri  2   3 , Sonia Cipriani  3 , Matteo Franchi  4   5 , Giovanni Corrao  4   5 , Fabio Parazzini  2   3
Affiliations

The role of maternal age on the risk of preterm birth among singletons and multiples: a retrospective cohort study in Lombardy, Norther Italy

Giovanna Esposito et al. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: All over the world, especially in the developed countries, maternal age at birth is rising. This study aimed to assess the role of maternal age on the occurrence of preterm birth (PTB) in a large birth cohort of Lombardy Region, Northern Italy.

Methods: This population-based study used data from regional healthcare utilization databases of Lombardy to identify women who delivered between 2007 and 2017. PTBs were defined as births before 37 completed weeks of gestation and considered according to the gestational age (two categories: < 32 weeks and 32 to 36 weeks). Six maternal age groups were defined (< 20, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, ≥40 years). Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the crude and adjusted odds ratio (aOR) and the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) for PTB among different maternal age groups. Analyses were separately performed according to type of pregnancy (singletons and multiples). Reference group was the age group with the lowest frequency of PTB.

Results: Overall, 49,759 (6.6%) PTBs were observed, of which 41,807 were singletons and 7952 were multiples. Rates of PTB were lowest in the women aged 25-29 years among singletons and in the 30-34 years old group among multiples. Our results described a U-shaped association between maternal age and risk of PTB. In particular, the risk of a singleton PTB between 32 and 36 weeks was significantly higher for women aged less than 20 years (aOR = 1.16, CI 95%: 1.04-1.30) and more than 40 years (aOR = 1.62 CI 95%: 1.54-1.70). The highest risk of a multiple delivery between 32 and 36 weeks was observed among women aged less than 25 years and more than 40 years (aOR = 1.79, CI 95%: 1.01-3.17, aOR = 1.47, CI 95%: 1.16-1.85 and aOR = 1.36, CI 95%: 1.19-1.55 respectively for < 20, 20-24 and > 40 age categories). PTB before 32 completed weeks occurred more frequently in the same age categories, except that among multiples no association with advanced maternal age emerged.

Conclusion: Our study suggested that, after adjustment for potential confounders, both advance and young maternal age were associated with an increased risk of PTB.

Keywords: Maternal age; Multiples; Preterm birth; Singletons.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Giovanni Corrao received research support from the European Community (EC), the Italian Agency of Drugs (AIFA), and the Italian Ministry for University and Research (MIUR). He took part in a variety of projects that were funded by pharmaceutical companies (i.e. Novartis, GSK, Roche, AMGEN and BMS). He also received honoraria as a member of the advisory board to Roche. The other authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Preterm birth according to maternal age group among singletons. Lombardy, Italy, 2007–2017
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Preterm birth according to maternal age group among multiples. Lombardy, Italy, 2007–2017
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Average maternal age according to mode of labor among singleton and multiple preterm births. Lombardy, Italy, 2007–2017
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. WHO Recommended definitions, terminology and format for statistical tables related to the perinatal period and use of a new certificate for cause of perinatal deaths. Modifications recommended by FIGO as amended October 14, 1976. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 1977;56(3):247–253. - PubMed
    1. Goldenberg RL, Culhane JF, Iams JD, Romero R. Epidemiology and causes of preterm birth. Lancet. 2008;371(9606):75–84. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)60074-4. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Vogel JP, Chawanpaiboon S, Moller AB, Watananirun K, Bonet M, Lumbiganon P. The global epidemiology of preterm birth. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 2018;52:3–12. doi: 10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2018.04.003. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chawanpaiboon S, Vogel JP, Moller AB, Lumbiganon P, Petzold M, Hogan D, Landoulsi S, Jampathong N, Kongwattanakul K, Laopaiboon M, et al. Global, regional, and national estimates of levels of preterm birth in 2014: a systematic review and modelling analysis. Lancet Glob Health. 2019;7(1):e37–e46. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(18)30451-0. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tough SC, Newburn-Cook C, Johnston DW, Svenson LW, Rose S, Belik J. Delayed childbearing and its impact on population rate changes in lower birth weight, multiple birth, and preterm delivery. Pediatrics. 2002;109(3):399–403. doi: 10.1542/peds.109.3.399. - DOI - PubMed