The role of cervical ultrasound in the management of Threatened Premature Delivery (TPD) in Africa: Experience at the University Teaching Hospital of Bogodogo (UTH-B) in Burkina Faso

Abstract

Introduction: The threat of premature delivery is very frequent in our labour context. Obstetric ultrasound is an essential tool in its management. To describe the predictive values of vaginal ultrasound of the cervix in the management of this pathology in an African university hospital, we conducted the present study.Methods and Patients: This was a prospective cross-sectional study from December 2021 to May 2022 at the Bogodogo University Hospital in Burkina Faso. Our series included all pregnant women who consulted us for a threat of preterm delivery between the 28th and 34th weeks of amenorrhoea and who actually had a cervical measurement on admission to the department. The results were analysed using Epi info 3.3.2 software and the significance level was set at 5%.Results: The frequency of threatened premature delivery was 1 in 37.7 deliveries. The mean age of the patients was 26.7 years, with extremes of 17 and 40 years. For a threshold of 25 mm for cervical length on ultrasound, the negative predictive value was 96.29% and the positive predictive value was 52.94%.Conclusion: Vaginal ultrasound of the cervix has a good negative predictive value for threatened preterm birth at a threshold of 25 mm. Its systematic use in other birthing rooms should improve the management of threatened preterm birth in countries with limited resources, through better selection of patients for hospitalisation.