A Summary by Savannah Sanders
Image Citation: http://vmc.vcu.edu
Approximately 15 million preterm birth worldwide happen at less then 37 weeks of gestation. Preterm birth are the second most common cause of neonatal deaths around the world. PTB is also the most common cause for death in infants for middle and income economies. If a child who is born preterm lives, the consequences can impact the child’s life, all the way through adulthood. African American women are more likely to deliver preterm. The estimate annual cost for PTB in the United States is over 26.2 billion dollars.
Both genetics and the environment play a role in how long a mother will carry a child. The microbiome is one of the most important factors of gestation length. Especially amount women who have African American decent. Microbe-induced inflammation can be caused by urinary track infections, STI’S, trichomoniasis, and bacterial vaginosis and can have an effect on PTB. Microbes from the lower reproductive tract have been associated with 40%-50% of PTB.
Homogeneous Lactobacillus-dominated microbiome has been the center of health for the female reproductive tract. And microbes similar to bacteria vaginosis have been known to cause STI’S, PTB, and pelvic inflammatory disease. However, women who are asymptomatic have had the microbes that cause harm. More research is going to happen to promote health, prevent and treat disease.
Reports that the microbiome “2,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39” suggest that vaginal microbiome has a high impact on PTB risk. Several studies show that the women with Lactobacillus crispatus have a lower risk of PTB. Whereas, African American women differ significantly. African American women are less likely to exhibit vaginal Lactobacillus. Population specific studies will need to happen to determine the impact of vaginal microbiome on PTB.
In one of the most recent studies, samples where collected from 1,572 pregnant women of all different ancestral decent. Omics data was generated from 579 pregnancies under the National Institutes of Health’s integrative Human Microbiome Project (iHMP). The study consisted of longitudinal, comprehensive, multi-omic profiling of 45 women that had a spontaneous PTB. 90 of the cases matched the controls and where of African American decent. This was one of the most largest comprehensive studies of the vaginal microbiome. The identified vaginal microbes that are associated with PTB.
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