Chorioamnionitis and Infectious Complications after Vaginal Delivery.

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the incidence of and define risk factors for postpartum infectious complications after vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) complicated by chorioamnionitis.

STUDY

DESIGN

A secondary analysis of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Maternal-Fetal Medicine Unit Cesarean Registry was performed. The primary outcome was a composite of postpartum infection: endometritis, sepsis, pelvic abscess, urinary tract infection, necrotizing fasciitis, and septic pelvic thrombophlebitis. Peripartum predictors were compared using parametric and nonparametric tests, as appropriate, and multivariate predictors assessed using logistic regression.

RESULTS

A total of 559 subjects had chorioamnionitis in labor and a successful VBAC. Twenty-four (4.3%) subjects experienced the primary outcome, mainly due to endometritis (19/24). Significant factors included preterm delivery <32 weeks (odds ratio [OR]: 3.05, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.32-7.06) and body mass index (BMI) ≥40 (OR: 4.63, 95% CI: 1.25-17.14). Receipt of postpartum antibiotics was protective against postpartum infection (OR: 0.28, 95% CI: 0.12-0.65). In multivariate analysis, preterm delivery <32 weeks, BMI ≥40, and receipt of postpartum antibiotics remained associated with postpartum infection.

CONCLUSION

Nearly 5% of women with chorioamnionitis had a postpartum infectious complication after vaginal delivery, with higher rates in those delivering at <32 weeks and with prepregnancy BMI ≥40. Receipt of postpartum antibiotics decreased the odds of postpartum infection markedly.