Table II.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of the study population, and results of the amniotic fluid analysis
| Clinical characteristics | Patients who delivered at term (≥37 weeks) | Patients who delivered preterm (<37 weeks) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBC (−) AFC (−) (n=29) |
WBC (+) AFC (+) (n=27) |
WBC (+) AFC (−) (n=13) |
WBC (−) AFC (+) (n=7) |
WBC (−) AFC (−) (n=24) |
|
| Age (years) ł | 25.9 (6.9) | 26.7 (6.1) | 23.2 (4.4) | 28.9 (4.6) | 24.0(5.5) |
| Ethnicity, n (%, African-American) ∞ | 23 (79.3) | 24 (88.9) | 10 (76.9) | 7 (100) | 23 (95.8) |
| Parity§ | 1 [0–5] | 1 [0–7] | 1 [0–5] | 2 [0–6] | 1 [0–9] |
| GA at amniocentesis (weeks) ł | 29.3 (3.3) | 26.5 (4.2) | 27.0 (2.2) | 31.9 (1.5) | 30.0 (3.5) |
| GA at delivery (weeks) ł | 38.6 (1.3) | 26.7 (4.2) | 27.8 (2.2) | 33.0 (1.2)* | 31.1(3.7)* |
| PPROM, n (%)∞ | 0 (0) | 12 (44.4%)* | 4 (30.8%)* | 6 (85.7%)* | 10 (41.7%)* |
| Indicated delivery, n (%)∞ | 3 (10.3) | 12 (44.4%)* | 1 (7.7%) | 4 (57.1%)* | 8 (33.3%)* |
| Spontaneous delivery, n (%)∞ | 26 (89.7) | 15 (55.6%)* | 12 (92. 3%) | 3 (42.9%)* | 16 (66.7%)* |
| Birthweight (g) ł | 3248.2 (411.7) | 1010 (566.2) | 1076.2 (381.3) | 1491.9 (325)* | 1776.3 (643.0)* |
| Amniotic fluid analysis | |||||
| WBC (cell/mm3) § | 5 [0–80] | 1000 [260–19200]* | 1000 [200–14800]* | 10 [3–88]* | 3 [0–62]* |
| Positive Gram stain, n (%) ∞ | 0 (0) | 17 (63.0)* | 1 (7.7) | 3 (42.9)* | 1 (4.2) |
| Glucose concentration <10 mg/dL, n (%) ∞ | 0 (0) | 16 (59.3)* | 6 (46.2)* | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
| Storage IL-6 (years) § | 3.0 [1.5–9.0] | 2.5 [1.4–2.5] | 2.9 [1.6–3.6] | 3.0 [1.9–8.7] | 2.4 [1.2–9.7] |
| Storage MMP8 (years) § | 3.0 [0.7–10.2] | 2.5 [0.7–9.7] | 3.0 [1.1–9.0] | 3.1 [1.9–8.7] | 2.4 [1.3–9.7] |
| Placental pathology | |||||
| Histological chorioamnionitis, n (%) ∞ | 1 (6.3) | 25 (92.6)* | 13 (100)* | 2 (33.3) | 8 (36.4) |
GA=gestational age; PPROM=preterm prelabor rupture of membranes; WBC=white blood cell count (+WBC: WBC count > 100 cells/mm3); AFC=amniotic fluid cultures.
Missing placental pathology, n=16 (13 in term delivery group).
*
p < 0.05 versus “normal” group (ł Dunnet’s, ∞ Fisher’s exact, § Dunn’s tests).
Ł
Data presented as mean (SD).
§
Data presented as median [range].