Using vaginal Group B Streptococcus colonisation in women with preterm premature rupture of membranes to guide the decision for immediate delivery: a secondary analysis of the PPROMEXIL trials

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether vaginal Group B Streptococcus (GBS) colonisation or other baseline characteristics of women with preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM) can help in identifying subgroups of women who would benefit from immediate delivery.

DESIGN: Secondary analysis of the PPROMEXIL trials.

SETTING: Sixty hospitals in the Netherlands.

POPULATION: Women with PPROM between 34 and 37 weeks of gestation.

METHODS: Random assignment of 723 women to immediate delivery or expectant management.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Early onset neonatal sepsis.

RESULTS: Vaginal GBS colonisation status was the only marker which was significantly associated with the benefit of immediate delivery (P for interaction: 0.04). GBS colonisation was observed in 14% of women. The risk of early onset neonatal sepsis in GBS-positive women was high (15.2%) when they were managed expectantly but this risk was reduced to 1.8% with immediate delivery. The early onset neonatal sepsis risk was much lower in neonates of GBS-negative women: 2.6% after expectant management and 2.9% with immediate delivery. We estimated that by inducing labour only in GBS-positive women, there would be a 10.4% increase in term delivery rate, while keeping neonatal sepsis and caesarean delivery rates comparable to a strategy of labour induction for all.

CONCLUSIONS: Our post hoc findings suggest that women with PROM between 34 and 37 weeks might benefit from immediate delivery if they have GBS vaginal colonisation, while in GBS-negative women labour induction could be delayed until 37 weeks.