�Giving atomic number 12 sulphate to stop women from going into premature labour could reduce the chances of babies by and by being diagnosed with
moderate to austere cerebral palsy, said researchers in the US.
The multicenter, placebo-controlled, double blind trial was the work of Dr Dwight Rouse, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and
colleagues, and is promulgated in the 28 August online issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, NEJM.
For the research, Rouse and colleagues studied 2,241 women world Health Organization were at risk of going into premature labour between their 24th and 31st calendar week of
maternity. The women were indiscriminately assigned to receive either magnesium sulfate, given intravenously as a 6g bolus followed by a constant
infusion of 2g per hour, or a coordinated placebo.
Magnesium sulphate is used to slow down the contractions of the uterus and thereby detain labour.
The researchers followed the surviving babies for deuce years. They counted the number of stillbirths or babies that died ahead reaching 1 year of
corrected historic period, and they also counted the incidence of contain or severe cerebral palsy at or beyond 2 years of corrected age.
The results showed that:
95.6 per cent of the children were followed up.
Primary analysis did not show pregnant differences between the two groups in the combined risk of moderate or severe paralysis or death (11.3 per
penny in the treatment group, 11.7 per cent in the placebo group, with a relative hazard of 0.97).
Secondary analysis showed that mince or knockout cerebral palsy occurred significantly less frequently in the magnesium sulphate group (1.9 per
cent versus 3.5 per cent more cases in the placebo grouping, giving a relative risk of 0.55, ie 45 per cent less risk of moderate or severe cerebral palsy
in the treatment group).
The risk of infection of death was non significantly different between the groups.
Adverse events such as flushing and sweating were more common among the women in the handling group, and none of the women
experienced a life-threatening event.
The authors complete that:
"Fetal exposure to mg sulfate before anticipated other preterm bringing did not reduce the combined risk of hold or hard cerebral
paralysis or death, although the rate of cerebral palsy was reduced among survivors."
An editorial in the same issue of the journal said the study showed promising results but did not commend using atomic number 12 sulphate in anticipated
preterm labour as a way of life to prevent cerebral palsy.
The editors, who included Dr Fiona Stanley, from the University of Western Australia's Centre for Child Health Research, said that more research was
required that looked more intimately at the reasons for preterm birthing and the effects of timing (eg relative to pregnancy weeks and birth) and sizing of
atomic number 12 sulphate doses.
"A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Magnesium Sulfate for the Prevention of Cerebral Palsy."
Rouse, Dwight J., Hirtz, Deborah G., Thom, Elizabeth, Varner, Michael W., Spong, Catherine Y., Mercer, Brian M., Iams, Jay D., Wapner, Ronald J.,
Sorokin, Yoram, Alexander, James M., Harper, Margaret, Thorp, John M., Jr., Ramin, Susan M., Malone, Fergal D., Carpenter, Marshall, Miodovnik,
Menachem, Moawad, Atef, O'Sullivan, Mary J., Peaceman, Alan M., Hankins, Gary D.V., Langer, Oded, Caritis, Steve N., Roberts, James M., the
Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network.
N Engl J Med 2008, 359: 895-905.
Volume 359; pages 895-905, published on-line August 28, 2008.
Click here for Abstract.
Sources: NEJM.
Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
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