A comparative Study Of Oral 400 mg Natural Micronized Progesterone (OMP)Verses Vaginal 400 Mg Natural Micronized Progesterone (VMP) in Threatened Preterm Labour And Perinatal Neonatal Outcomes

Preterm deliveries significantly contribute to neonatal mortalities and morbidities in children under the age of five. Progesterone, Tocolytics and steroid usage have been found to decrease the incidence of threatened preterm and neonatal mortality and morbidity. A prospective study was done to compare oral 400 mg natural micronized progesterone to vaginal 400 mg natural micronized progesterone and it was found that patients on OMP presented in labour earlier than patients on VMP i.e. the VMP group ended up in more term pregnancies.81.42% neonates of VMP were found to be asymptomatic as compared to smaller 72.85% neonates of OMP. Incidence of neonatal morbidity such as asphyxia was also found to be lesser in VMP as compared to OMP (10% vs 5.71%). NICU admission (4.28% vs 11.42%) was found higher in OMP group. Pertaining to the fact vaginal progesterone bypasses the first-pass metabolism, which explains its superior effectiveness in preventing preterm labour.