Clinical practice
← vista completaPublished on September 1, 2012 | http://doi.org/10.5867/medwave.2012.08.5477
Premature delivery
Parto prematuro
Abstract
Preterm delivery is the single most important cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. In Chile, preterm births have increased in the past decade, although neonatal morbidity and mortality attributable to it shows a downward trend, thanks to improvements in neonatal care of premature babies, rather than the success of obstetric preventive and therapeutic strategies. This article describes clinical entities, disease processes and conditions that constitute predisposing factors of preterm birth, as well as an outline for the prevention and clinical management of women at risk of preterm birth.