Gestational age as a predictor for subsequent preterm birth in New South Wales, Australia

There is no validated evidence base on predictive ability and absolute risk of preterm birth by gestational age of the previous pregnancy. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of mothers who gave birth to their first two children in New South Wales, 1994-2016. For each week of final gestational age of the first birth, we calculated relative and absolute risks of subsequent preterm birth.

Citation:
Pereira G, Regan AK, Wong K, Tessema GA. Gestational age as a predictor for subsequent preterm birth in New South Wales, Australia. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021;21(1).

Keywords:
Gestational age; Predictive value of tests; Premature birth; Recurrence; Sensitivity and specificity

Abstract:
There is no validated evidence base on predictive ability and absolute risk of preterm birth by gestational age of the previous pregnancy. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of mothers who gave birth to their first two children in New South Wales, 1994-2016. For each week of final gestational age of the first birth, we calculated relative and absolute risks of subsequent preterm birth.