Impact of Asthma on Perinatal Outcomes: Risks and Management Strategies in Pregnant Women

Abstract

Background: Pregnant women frequently have asthma, particularly asthma flare-ups are prevalent throughout pregnancy. One frequent pregnancy issue is parental asthma, which might have negative short-term repercussions on the baby's development. Objective: To determine the perinatal outcomes among pregnant females having asthma. Methodology: The current retrospective cohort study was conducted in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Mardan Medical Complex from July 2020 to December 2020 after the ethical approval from the ethical review board of the hospital. A total of 62 asthmatics and 59 non-asthmatics pregnant mothers with single-ton births were selected through a random sampling technique, in addition, informed consent was also obtained from each participant before the collection of data, moreover, they were ensured that confidentiality and anonymity would also be maintained throughout the period. All the collected data was thoroughly analyzed by using SPPS version 23. Results:  The retrospective cohort study included a total of 62 asthmatics and 59 non-asthmatics pregnant mothers, in addition, their maternal and fetal outcomes were assessed. The mean age of asthmatic mothers was 27.21 ± 4.8 years while in non-asthmatic it was 26.71 ± 3.89 years. The premature rupture of the membrane was 7% and 2% with a p-value of 0.002 among asthmatic and non-asthmatic mothers. The value of APGAR was also lower at 6.93 and 7.84 at 1 and 5 minutes in mothers with asthma, which was higher among non-asthmatic mothers at 1 and 5 minutes (7.74 and 8.36). Moreover, the gestational age was lesser (36.89) among asthmatic as compared to non-asthmatic. Additionally, the number of hospitalizations was 2.0 and 1.52 amongst both mothers having asthma and those without asthma. Conclusion: The present study concluded that pregnant mothers with asthma were more likely to suffer from adverse perinatal outcomes such as premature rupture of membrane, low birth weight, and lower gestation age than those without asthma. There was also less prevalence of UTIs and hospitalization among non-asthmatic pregnant females.