ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate the course of pregnancy and delivery of obstetric patients admitted for intensive care, and determine the health status of their infants. METHODS: This was a retrospective register-based study. Four university hospitals in Finland participated. Obstetric patients admitted to the intensive care unit in any trimester of pregnancy, during delivery or up to 42â¯days post partum were identified from clinical information systems over a five-year study period. Parturient and infant data were collected from the Medical Birth Register. RESULTS: During the study period (2007-2011), 283 obstetric patients were identified from the clinical information system. The most common reason for admission was hypertensive complications (58%), followed by obstetric haemorrhage (25.1%). Advanced maternal age, nulliparity and multiple pregnancies were associated with obstetric intensive care unit admissions. Of patients admitted to intensive care, 68.9% delivered by unscheduled caesarean section. Nearly 60% of neonates were born preterm, 56.1% needed treatment in a neonatal intensive care unit or an observation unit and 4.6% died within one week. CONCLUSION: Advanced maternal age, nulliparity and multiple pregnancy were more common among intensive care unit-admitted women than in the general obstetric population. The main causes for admission were hypertensive complications and obstetric haemorrhage. Compared with the general obstetric population, neonates of intensive care unit-admitted mothers were eight times more likely to require treatment on a neonatal ward and their risk of neonatal death was also eight times greater.
