To investigate the risk factors for vaginal infections and antimicrobial susceptibilities of vaginal microorganisms among womenwho experienced preterm birth (PTB), we compared the prevalence of vaginal microorganisms between womenwho experienced preterm labor (PTL) without preterm delivery and spontaneous PTB.
The overall detection rates for each microorganism were U. urealyticum, 62.7%; M. hominis, 12.7%; GBS, 7.9%; C. trachomatis, 2.4%; and HSV type II, 0.8%. The colonization rate of GBS in control group was 17.6%. The prevalence of GBS, M. hominis, and U. urealyticum in PTL without preterm delivery and spontaneous PTB were 3.8% and 8.7% (relative risk [RR], 2.26), 3.8% and 17.3% (RR, 4.52), and 53.8% and 60.9% (RR, 1.13), respectively, showing no significant difference between the 2 groups. The detection rate of M. hominis by PCR was higher than that by culturemethod (11.1% vs. 4.0%, P=0.010). The detection rates of U. urealyticum by PCR and culturemethod were 16.7% and 57.1%, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
There was no significant difference in the prevalence of GBS, M. hominis, and U. urealyticum between the spontaneous PTB and PTL without preterm delivery groups.