What is the optimal strategy in the management of patients with preterm premature rupture of membranes before 32 weeks of gestation?

OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to compare the outcomes of expectant management of pregnancy or immediate delivery in patients with preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) between 24+(0) and 32+(0) weeks of pregnancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study conducted at a tertiary medical center. Patients who were diagnosed as having PPROM between 24+(0) and 32+(0) weeks of gestation were selected from an electronic database. Thirty-one patients with expectant management and 22 patients with spontaneous immediate delivery were analyzed. Birth weight, Apgar score, duration of stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), composite adverse outcomes, and mortality rates of groups were compared. Binary logistic regression analysis with backward stepwise elimination was used to determine confounding factors for antenatal complications and neonatal composite adverse outcomes. RESULTS: Gestational age at admission was smaller in the expectant management group. The median latency period was 6 days (range, 2-58 days). Although gestational age at delivery was similar, birth weights were smaller in expectant management group compared with the immediate delivery group (p=0.264 and p<0.05, respectively). Apgar scores, duration in the NICU, composite adverse outcomes, and neonatal mortality rates were similar in each group. Antenatal complication in the expectant management group was higher (p<0.05). Gestational age at delivery and serum C-reactive protein levels were two confounding factors for antenatal complication and gestational age at delivery was the only factor affecting composite adverse outcome. CONCLUSION: Expectant management in patients with PPROM at 24 to 32 gestational weeks might be considered as a good alternative.