Introduction: preterm birth is associated with 5—18% of pregnancies and is a leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality. The prevention and prognosis of preterm labor have been a long-standing challenge.

OBJECTIVE

Assessment of clinical, anamnestic, laboratory and ultrasound prognostic risk factors for preterm birth.

Materials and methods: a prospective randomized cohort study was conducted, which included 136 pregnant women of the main group who received inpatient treatment for the threat of preterm birth in 2022—2023 on the basis of the Research Institute of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Azerbaijan at various stages of pregnancy, and 50 pregnant women of the control group without the threat of preterm birth who were registered as outpatients in the same institution. Clinical and anamnestic, laboratory (serum progesterone, C-reactive protein, bacteriological examination of the urogenital tract) and ultrasound methods were analyzed.

RESULTS

A decrease in progesterone levels was recorded in 69.9% of pregnant women of the main group (p<0.001), the most important of the instrumental indicators of preterm labor is the length of the cervix less than 10 m, which is detected up to 7 times more often than in healthy pregnant women (p<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

A history of preterm birth, low/high BMI, decreased progesterone levels and shortening of the cervix less than 10 mm are markers of preterm birth.