Practical considerations with 17-Hydroxyprogesterone caproate for preterm birth prevention: does timing of initiation and compliance matter?

17-alpha hydroxyprogesterone caproate for the prevention of recurrent preterm birth among singleton pregnant women with a prior history of preterm birth: a systematic review and meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials

To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that investigated the clinical benefits of 17-alpha hydroxyprogesterone caproate (17OHPC) in the prevention of recurrent preterm birth (PTB) among singleton pregnant women with a previous history of PTB. We searched four major databases up till April 2021 and assessed the risk of bias in the included studies. We meta-analyzed various maternal-neonatal endpoints (n=18) and pooled them as mean difference or risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) using the random-effects model. Six RCTs met the inclusion criteria, comprising 2,573 patients (17OHPC=1,617, control=956). RCTs revealed an overall low risk of bias. The rates of PTB <35 weeks (n=5 RCTs; RR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.63–0.93; P=0.008), PTB <32 weeks (n=3 RCTs; RR, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.51–0.91; P=0.009), neonates with low birth weight (<2.5 kg) at delivery (n=3 RCTs; RR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.5–0.79; P<0.001), and neonatal death (n=4 RCTs; RR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.20–0.84; P=0.02) were significantly reduced in the 17OHPC group compared with the control group. Moreover, 17OHPC treatment correlated with a significantly decreased rate of retinopathy (n=2 RCTs; RR, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.18–0.97; P=0.004). However, there were no significant differences in the rates of neonatal intensive care unit admission, cesarean delivery, and other preterm-related complications between both the groups. Among singleton pregnant women with a prior history of PTB, 17OHPC may favorably decrease the risks of recurrent PTB and reduce the rate of neonatal death.

Utilization, adherence, and outcomes of 17-alpha hydroxyprogesterone caproate for recurrent spontaneous preterm birth prevention

OBJECTIVE

To describe the use of and adherence to 17-alpha hydroxyprogesterone caproate (17-OHPC), explore factors associated with its utilization and adherence, and to investigate the outcomes of 17-OHPC in a real-world setting.

METHODS

The Decision Resources Group (DRG) database (1 January 2012-31 December 2017) was used to identify women with diagnosis of "history of preterm labor", aged 16-50 years old, had a singleton gestation, were continuously enrolled for at least 6 months and 9 months before and after the index date, respectively, and had a delivery outcome recorded. Adequate adherence was defined and compared using two approaches: (1) patients receiving at least 10 injections of 17-OHPC; (2) number of received injections/eligible number of injections ≥0.7. The outcome of 17-OHPC was evaluated by the incidence rate of preterm birth (PTB). Bivariate tests compared patients' characteristics with their use of and adherence to 17-OHPC, and examined the associations between 17-OHPC utilization and incidence of diabetes or hypertension. Stepwise logistic regression was conducted to assess the effect of adherence on the delivery outcome.

RESULTS

Of 28,339 patients meeting study criteria, 2585 (9.1%) had ≥1 claim for 17-OHPC. An increasing trend of utilization was observed from 2012 to 2017 (7.6-13.1%). The utilization rate was highest in the Southwest US (13.8%) (p < .001). Commercial insurance patients (9.6%) were more likely to use 17-OHPC than Medicaid patients (7.9%) (p < .001). Patients with higher Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) scores were less likely to use 17-OHPC. Of women prescribed 17-OHPC, 792 (30.6%) and 424 (16.4%) were adherent using two definitions, respectively. No difference in PTB rate was observed between adherers and non-adherers (definition 1: aOR = 0.97, 95% CI = 0.81-1.16; definition 2: aOR = 1.18, 95% CI = 0.95-1.48). No association was found between 17-OHPC and incidence of diabetes (p = .96); however, use of 17-OHPC was associated with a lower incidence rate of hypertension (p = .002).

CONCLUSIONS

17-OHPC utilization and adherence rates remain low. Insurance type and geographic region were associated with both utilization and adherence. There was no association between 17-OHPC adherence and effectiveness. More evidence is needed to determine if the use of 17-OHPC is advantageous in a sub-group of patients.

Latency of preterm hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and subsequent cardiovascular complications

OBJECTIVES

To test the hypothesis that increasing latency from diagnosis to delivery in patients with preterm hypertensive disorders of pregnancy is associated with an increased maternal risk of cardiovascular admission after delivery.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective cohort from the IBM MarketScan® Commercial Database from 2006 to 2016. Patients age 15-45 years with a preterm delivery complicated by a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy, at least 6 months of continuous insurance coverage prior to delivery and at least 365 days of coverage post-delivery were included.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Hospital readmission after delivery for a composite of acute cardiovascular events (cardiomyopathy, heart failure, cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction) or cerebrovascular events. Cox proportional hazards were used to estimate the risk of the primary outcome for each week of latency from diagnosis to delivery.

RESULTS

There were 34,989 women in the study with a median follow-up of 2.57 years (IQR 1.66 to 1.54 years) with a median time from diagnosis to delivery of three days (IQR 0 to 14 days). An increasing time from diagnosis to delivery was associated with an increased risk of an acute cardiovascular event (adjusted HR 1.06, 95% CI 1.01, 1.11 per week), in models adjusted for maternal comorbidities and demographic factors. Later gestational age at diagnosis was associated with a decreased risk of maternal cardiovascular admission after delivery (aHR 0.94, 95% CI 0.91, 0.98 for each week increase in gestational age).

CONCLUSIONS

Prolonging expectant management of preterm hypertensive disorders of pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of maternal cardiovascular disease after delivery.