Explore immediate treatment options

  • Ask whether you will remain in the hospital, or go home on bedrest. If you will go home, ask about home monitoring for preterm labor.
  • Ask if you are a candidate for corrective procedures such as amnioinfusion, fibrin injections, or the amniopatch. You may need a different hospital and/or a different doctor for the procedure.
  • Ask to start antibiotics immediately. Some members of the PROM list have reported starting antibiotics immediately after they PROM’d, even though no infection was present. Although some health care practitioners will not prescribe antibiotics because they worry that antibiotics will “mask” an infection, several recent studies have shown antibiotics increase the possibility of a positive outcome. (see Resources section)
  • Ask if/when you can receive steroid shots to help your baby’s lung development. Members of the PROM list have reported receiving steroid shots as early as 23.5 weeks.
  • Ask for tocolytic drugs if you are having preterm labor. Members of the PROM list have reported receiving magnesium sulfate and/or terbutaline as early as 17 weeks.
  • Consult with doctors in other specialties before your baby is delivered, if applicable. For example, if you are 24 weeks or beyond, you should meet with a neonatologist to talk about what to expect if your baby is delivered preterm.


Continue »

This information was compiled by the members of the PROM list. Nothing on this page should be taken as medical advice. A doctor should be consulted before undertaking any of the medical treatments or methods recommended by the members of the list.

Article by Kay Squires, January 2005, updated July 2011
Special thanks to the members of the PROM list