Are birth outcomes in low risk birth cohorts related to hospital birth volumes? A systematic review.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth
; 21(1): 531, 2021 Jul 27.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34315416
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
There is convincing evidence that birth in hospitals with high birth volumes increases the chance of healthy survival in high-risk infants. However, it is unclear whether this is true also for low risk infants. The aim of this systematic review was to analyze effects of hospital's birth volume on mortality, mode of delivery, readmissions, complications and subsequent developmental delays in all births or predefined low risk birth cohorts. The search strategy included EMBASE and Medline supplemented by citing and cited literature of included studies and expert panel highlighting additional literature, published between January/2000 and February/2020. We included studies which were published in English or German language reporting effects of birth volumes on mortality in term or all births in countries with neonatal mortality < 5/1000. We undertook a double-independent title-abstract- and full-text screening and extraction of study characteristics, critical appraisal and outcomes in a qualitative evidence synthesis.RESULTS:
13 retrospective studies with mostly acceptable quality were included. Heterogeneous volume-thresholds, risk adjustments, outcomes and populations hindered a meta-analysis. Qualitatively, four of six studies reported significantly higher perinatal mortality in lower birth volume hospitals. Volume-outcome effects on neonatal mortality (n = 7), stillbirths (n = 3), maternal mortality (n = 1), caesarean sections (n = 2), maternal (n = 1) and neonatal complications (n = 1) were inconclusive.CONCLUSION:
Analyzed studies indicate higher rates of perinatal mortality for low risk birth in hospitals with low birth volumes. Due to heterogeneity of studies, data synthesis was complicated and a meta-analysis was not possible. Therefore international core outcome sets should be defined and implemented in perinatal registries. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION PROSPERO CRD42018095289.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Gravidez
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Resultado da Gravidez
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Salas de Parto
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Hospitais com Alto Volume de Atendimentos
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Hospitais com Baixo Volume de Atendimentos
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
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Observational_studies
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Qualitative_research
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Risk_factors_studies
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Systematic_reviews
Limite:
Female
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Humans
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Infant
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Newborn
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article