Affiliations: [a] Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Razavi Khorasan, Mashhad, Iran
| [b] Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Iran
| [c] Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Razavi Khorasan, Iran
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Mohammad Hosein Ataee Nakhaei, Department of Neonatology, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Iran. Tel.: +98 543 329 57 65; E-mail: drataee@ymail.com.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Vitamin D deficiency has been suggested to be a risk factor for neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). This study aimed to evaluate the effect of 25 (OH) D administrations in pregnant women with findings of preterm labor on the incidence of RDS in their preterm neonates. MATERIALS AND METHODS:A randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted on pregnant mothers with gestational age (GA) of less than 34 weeks at risk of preterm delivery. 175 subjects were randomly assigned into two groups, including intervention (intramuscular injection of 50,000 units of 25(OH) D during 72 hours before delivery) and control (no injections). Serum concentrations of 25(OH) D were measured shortly after birth in both mothers and neonates. Then, clinical and laboratory results of mothers and their offspring were recorded (in a checklist). Short-term outcomes and the need for respiratory support were also assessed. Data were analyzed by independent t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, Fisher’s exact test, and chi-square test. RESULTS:Even though gestational age, birth weight, delivery method, and serum vitamin D levels are consistent among both groups, 45% of neonates in the control group and 20% in the intervention group developed respiratory distress syndrome (P = 0.05). The mean 25(OH) D level in neonates was 17.7±10.5 and 19.29±9.94 ng/mL in the intervention and control groups, respectively (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION:A single dose of 50,000 units of intramuscular 25(OH)D in pregnant women at risk of preterm labor can lower the risk of RDS in the infant.
