Maternal asthma and pregnancy outcomes: a retrospective cohort study.
OBJECTIVE
We examined the relationship between asthma during pregnancy and selected infant and maternal outcomes.


METHODS
A retrospective cohort study was conducted on mother-infant dyads identified from a linked infant and maternal hospital discharge database in the Canadian province of Quebec between fiscal years 1991-1992 and 1995-1996. Mothers with asthma (n = 2193) were compared with a randomly selected control sample (n = 8772) from the remaining population of mothers.


RESULTS
After important confounding variables were accounted for, maternal asthma was significantly associated with several adverse infant outcomes, including preterm birth and birth of infants who are very small for gestational age, and adverse maternal outcomes, such as idiopathic preterm labor, early idiopathic preterm labor, preeclampsia, transient hypertension of pregnancy, pregnancy-associated hypertension, chorioamnionitis, and cesarean delivery.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results demonstrated that pregnant women with asthma are at substantially increased risk for several adverse infant and maternal outcomes and suggest the need for extra attention to mothers with asthma and their infants.
Liu
S
S
Bureau of Reproductive and Child Health, Laboratory Centre for Disease Control, Health Canada, Ottawa, Ontario.
Wen
S W
SW
Demissie
K
K
Marcoux
S
S
Kramer
M S
MS
D000037:Abruptio Placentae / Q000150:complications; D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications*; D001724:Birth Weight; D015331:Cohort Studies; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities; D019992:Databases as Topic; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007902:Length of Stay; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D007752:Obstetric Labor, Premature / Q000150:complications; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010923:Placenta Previa / Q000150:complications; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000150:complications; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011792:Quebec; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012727:Sex Characteristics