Occupational fatigue score and risk of preterm birth

The aim of this study was to determine the elements of fatigue in occupations which constitute possible risk factors for the course of a pregnancy, and, in particular, that could cause premature birth.  A total of 400 women with singleton pregnancies at ≥ 28 weeks’ gestation were enrolled in the study conducted at the Labor room,  Zenana Hospital , Jaipur. Patients reported the number of hours worked per week and answered specific questions designed to determine the following 5 sources of occupational fatigue: posture, work with industrial machines, physical exertion, mental stress, and environmental stress. Fatigue was quantified (0-5 index) according to the number of these sources positively reported. Simple and Mantel-Haenszel χ2 tests were used to test the univariate association and hypothesis of a linear trend between sources of occupational fatigue and spontaneous preterm delivery. Covariables were considered by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Women who did not work outside the home were considered separately from those who worked but did not report any sources of occupational fatigue. Result: women with sternous activity had higher occurrence of preterm birth. 18 % preterm mothers had high occupational fatigue index as compared to 75% term mothers, with p value <0.1,which was significant.