Association of Placental Fetal and Maternal Vascular Malperfusion with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia and Mortality in Preterm Infants
Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association of placental histopathological abnormalities with bronchopulmonary dysplasia and mortality in preterm infants.
Methods: This prospective study included preterm infants ≤32 weeks and ≤1500 g who were followed in the NICU of a tertiary university hospital between May 2019 and May 2020. The infants were separated into 2 groups as those with and without bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Placentas were evaluated according to the Amsterdam Placenta Study Group.
Results: In this study, 35 preterm infants were evaluated. Birthweight was determined to be statistically significantly lower in Group 1 (1045±160.63 g) than in Group 2 (1453.95±529.08 g) (P=0.002). According to the median (min-max) gestational week at birth, the age of Group 1 [27.5 (26-29)] was statistically significantly lower than that of Group 2 [30.5 (25-32)] (P=0.001). Nosocomial sepsis was determined at a statistically higher rate in Group 1 [58.3%, n=7) than in Group 2 (13%, n=3) (P=0.015). The median length of stay in hospital was significantly longer in Group 1 [51 days (38-92)] than in Group 2 [21 days (1-74)] (P=0.001). The number of days on non-invasive ventilation was statistically significantly greater in Group 1 [11(2-57)] than in Group 2 [2(0-43)] (P=0.001). Maternal-fetal vascular malperfusion was found to be higher in Group 2. Mortality was observed in Group 2 and not in Group 1.
Conclusion: No statistically significant difference was observed in placental histopathological findings between the groups, with maternal and fetal vascular malperfusion representing the most frequent lesions. Mortality was seen exclusively in the non-BPD group. These findings suggest a potential association between placental vascular pathologies and neonatal mortality; however, larger multicenter prospective studies are required to confirm this relationship.
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Article Information
- Article Type Research Article
- Submitted March 12, 2026
- Accepted June 14, 2026
- Published June 22, 2026
- Issue 2026: Online First
- Section Research Article
- Categories
The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to privacy or ethical restrictions.
