The perceptions of pregnant women about cervical length screening for preterm birth prevention

Background The Western Australian Preterm Birth Prevention Initiative was officially launched in November 2014. It demonstrated an initial decrease in the preterm birth rate in Western Australia. One of the key points of this initiative is the routine ultrasound measurement of the cervical length in mid-pregnancy. Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the perceptions and attitudes of Western Australian women regarding transvaginal cervical length (TVCL) screening for preterm birth prevention. Materials and methods Self-administered questionnaires were completed by pregnant women before and after their mid-trimester obstetric ultrasound. Maternal demographical and medical data were collected in addition to opinions of TVCL screening. Results A total of 598 women participated with the maternal age range representative of the Western Australian obstetric population. There was a high rate of acceptance of TVCL imaging, with 2% of the 149 women declining a transvaginal ultrasound (TVU) offered in this study, 1.5% refusing a TVU in the past and 5.7% reporting that they would have a concern in having a TVU in the future. Women stated that they either had declined TVCL in the past (11%) or would decline in the future (30.7%) as they wanted to discuss the procedure with their clinician first, had been advised not to have a TVU by their clinician (11% in the past and 47.7% in the future) or felt uncomfortable with the operator (22% at a previous TVU and 34.4% in the future). Conclusion Pregnant women participating in this study had a high acceptance of TVCL screening for preterm birth prevention.