# Prophylactic Cervical Cerclage in Cases Following Cervical Conization at a Japanese Perinatal Center

## TL;DR

This study examines whether prophylactic cervical cerclage prevents preterm delivery in women with a history of cervical conization.

## Contribution

The study provides new evidence on the effectiveness of cervical cerclage in preventing preterm delivery after cervical conization.

## Key findings

- Prophylactic cervical cerclage did not significantly reduce preterm delivery rates.
- All preterm deliveries following cerclage were associated with histological chorioamnionitis.

## Abstract

The objective of this study was to re-examine the effect of cerclage on the possible factors associated with preterm delivery in women who had cervical conization. This was a retrospective cohort study comparing the obstetric outcomes of women with or without prophylactic cervical cerclage in pregnancy following a prior conization and managed at our institute between 2004 and 2023. In this study, there were 75% of pregnant women with a history of cervical conization. In 13 women of these (17%), prophylactic cervical cerclage was performed at 12-17 weeks' gestation. The incidence of preterm delivery was 15 (9/62) and 31% (4/13, p = 0.38) in cases with and without cervical cerclage, respectively. The prevalence of histological chorioamnionitis (CAM) in cases of preterm delivery following cervical cerclage was 100%. Prophylactic cervical cerclage in the cases following conization did not contribute to the prevention of preterm delivery associated with the development of CAM.