Guidance

This guideline covers the care of women with a singleton pregnancy at increased risk of, or with symptoms and signs of, preterm labour (before 37 weeks), and women with a singleton pregnancy having a planned preterm birth. It aims to reduce the risks of preterm birth for the baby and describes treatments to prevent or delay early labour and birth.

In this guideline, we use the terms 'woman' or 'mother' throughout. These should be taken to include people who do not identify as women but are pregnant or have given birth.

 November 2024: There is a problem with the supply of cassettes used for fetal fibronectin testing. We will review our guidance on diagnosing preterm labour in women with intact membranes and use our topic prioritisation process to decide whether to update it. For more information, see the NHS England letter on the discontinuation of Hologic fetal fibronectin testing.

Last reviewed: 1 May 2023

We have reviewed our guidelines portfolio to identify topics that we think will add the most value to the health and care system and have agreed the updates recommended in this surveillance report will not proceed as planned.

For information on related topics, including twin and triplet pregnancy, see our women's and reproductive health summary page.

Next review: This guidance will be reviewed if there is new evidence that is likely to change the recommendations.

Recommendations

 This guideline includes new and updated recommendations on:

It also includes recommendations on:

Who is it for?

  • Healthcare professionals who care for women at increased risk of or with symptoms and signs of preterm labour and women having a planned preterm birth
  • Commissioners and providers of maternity services
  • Women at increased risk of or with symptoms and signs of preterm labour and women having a planned preterm birth, and their families and carers

Is this guideline up to date?

 

Guideline development process

How we develop NICE guidelines

Your responsibility

The recommendations in this guideline represent the view of NICE, arrived at after careful consideration of the evidence available. When exercising their judgement, professionals and practitioners are expected to take this guideline fully into account, alongside the individual needs, preferences and values of their patients or the people using their service. It is not mandatory to apply the recommendations, and the guideline does not override the responsibility to make decisions appropriate to the circumstances of the individual, in consultation with them and their families and carers or guardian.

All problems (adverse events) related to a medicine or medical device used for treatment or in a procedure should be reported to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency using the Yellow Card Scheme.

Local commissioners and providers of healthcare have a responsibility to enable the guideline to be applied when individual professionals and people using services wish to use it. They should do so in the context of local and national priorities for funding and developing services, and in light of their duties to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, to advance equality of opportunity and to reduce health inequalities. Nothing in this guideline should be interpreted in a way that would be inconsistent with complying with those duties.

Commissioners and providers have a responsibility to promote an environmentally sustainable health and care system and should assess and reduce the environmental impact of implementing NICE recommendations wherever possible.