What have we done?
Over the 18 months from September 2019, to February 2021 we performed a UK wide study of 364 women affected by PPROM between 16 weeks and 0 days and 22 weeks and 6 days of pregnancy. 326 women had one baby and 38 women had twins or triplets.
What did we find?
You can download all of the infographics here:
PPROM information for women and families
PPROM information for healthcare professionals
Information for Women and Families: PPROM under 23 weeks of pregnancy - When your waters break very early
A UK wide study of 364 weomen who experiences early PPROM (Preterm Prelabour Rupture of Membranes) from 16 weeks and 0 days to 22 weeks and 6 days of pregnancy. Conducted September 2019 to February 2021.
How common is it?
Early PPROM happens to at least 2 women every 3 days in the UK
What happened to the babies?
Amongst women who continued their pregnancy 44% had a baby that was born alive and 18% had a baby that survived to hospital discharge without severe morbidity.
What happened to the Mothers?
14% of mothers developed sepsis and 2 women (out of 364) died, both from sepsis.
How can this research help?
1. By alerting healthcare professionals to the serious nature of sepsis with early PPROM and the need for urgent treatment.
2. By alerting pregnant women to seek medical help promptly if they are unwell, especially if they have concerns about infection.
Symptoms of infection:
- Feeling hot and shivery
- Unusual vaginal discharge
- A high temperature
- Abdominal (tummy) pain
You can find out more about the symptoms of infection on the Sepsis Trust website.
Important considerations
In this study, when we say baby has "severe illness" it means the baby needed oxygen after birth when the mother would have been in 36 weeks of pregnancy and/or the baby had a significant bleed on the brain, which in some babies leads to cerebral palsy.
Long term disability is hard to predict from this data.
There are currently no national guidelines about how women with PPROM between 16 and 23 weeks of pregnancy should be cared for and outcomes may be different if guidelines were introduced.
Background and aims |
|---|
Detailed Results |
|---|
Implications for the future |
|---|
Read the paper |
|---|
Healthcare Professionals
If you are a Healthcare Professional and wish to read more about our study, as well as finidings and recommendations, follow the link below.
Healtcare Professionals section
Guidance and information on early PPROM has been a worrying issue in the UK for some time, we hope that as a result of our work in partnership with Little Heartbeats and UKOSS that doctors, midwives and mothers will have a greater understanding of the condition, its dangers, and how it can be mitigated and dealt with. We hope that we can provide mothers with a wealth of data to support the decision they feel is best for the health of both parent and baby.
Dr Laura Goodfellow
