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Progesterone prevents preterm labor
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Pregnant women who have had a premature birth can reduce the risk of another similar incident by introducing a progestogen, a synthetic substance that behaves in the body like the natural hormone progesterone.
This artificial hormone causes physical and metabolic changes in the female body, preparing the body to bear a child. It is called the "pregnancy hormone."
The study analyzed the course of pregnancy in 34 women who had previously experienced premature birth.
Between 1966 and 2011, 20 women from the entire group took the drug. Some received it by injection, others orally or vaginally.
The scientists' work was carried out under the supervision of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
As a result of the research, specialists noted that the drug is powerless against women with multiple pregnancies - carrying twins or triplets ended in premature birth.
“Despite the fact that we know about the increase in the level of the hormone progesterone in the blood of pregnant women, we are unable to get to the bottom of the truth and understand why the artificial introduction of its analogue does not give positive results and cannot reduce the risks of premature birth,” says Professor, co-author of the research Francis Likis.
According to statistics, the United States has a high rate of premature births, and in 2010 the United States was among the countries with the highest rate of this problem.
Progestogen is usually prescribed to pregnant women at the beginning of the second trimester at 37 weeks of gestation. Most women receive the medication by injection or vaginal insertion, while a smaller number of patients take it orally.
Dr. Likis says it's not clear whether progestogen helps at all or how.
"Women take the drug for different reasons, so we decided to find out why, and thus find out its effectiveness. Previous premature births and multiple pregnancies are two different things, and this is related to the prescription of the drug, as well as the decision made by the attending physician. They do not just look at the woman and say: "You are in danger", doctors find out the risk factors that can provoke premature birth, - says the professor. - Unfortunately, we have very little information about the effect of the drug on the fetus and the complications associated with it. To study this problem, time and observation of pregnant women who have experienced premature birth are needed."
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