The series' host, Thomas P. Campbell, MD, is chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital. Preterm Labor Mark Caine, MD, chief of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, discussed preterm labor with Dr. Campbell on Ask the Doctor. Normal pregnancies are 40 weeks long. Preterm labor is labor that results in delivery of the baby more than 3 weeks premature. Preterm labor can cause the most serious problems when babies are delivered between 23 and 34 weeks of pregnancy, which is approximately 6 to 8 months gestation.
Preterm labor can result in neurologic handicaps and death of the infant.
About half of neurologic handicaps such as cerebral palsy are related to preterm labor, including cerebral palsy, and three-fourths of infant deaths are related to preterm birth. Preterm labor is strongly associated with smoking, infection, poor nutrition, and absence of prenatal care. Ideally, women should plan their pregnancy. By visiting a healthcare provider before becoming pregnant, the woman can be screened for infection. Some infections, such as bacterial vaginosis, double the risk of preterm birth.