Progesterone Treatment to Prevent Preterm Birth

The publication in 2003 of two large randomised trials of progesterone therapy to prevent preterm delivery has generated renewed interest in this treatment and has added substantial numbers of subjects to previously published small trials. The randomised trials of progestogens have generally shown efficacy in reducing the rate of recurrent preterm delivery in women with singleton pregnancies who were at high risk for preterm labour and delivery. Most of the successful trials have employed 17α-hydroxyprogesterone caproate, and one trial has reported positive results using progesterone vaginal suppositories.