Increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes among women affected by herpangina.

OBJECTIVE: This population-based study aimed to assess the relation between herpangina and adverse pregnancy outcomes: low birthweight (LBW), small for gestational age (SGA), and preterm delivery.

STUDY DESIGN: A total of 242 pregnant women who had singleton births and who visited ambulatory care centers for the treatment of herpangina were assessed, together with 1936 matched women as a comparison group. Conditional logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the risk of LBW, preterm birth, and SGA for mothers with herpangina and unaffected mothers.

RESULTS: Compared with pregnant women without herpangina, herpangina was associated with a 2.29- (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.42-3.69), 1.67- (95% CI, 1.04-2.68), and 1.63-fold (95% CI, 1.14-2.33) increased risk of having LBW, preterm, and SGA infants, respectively, after adjusting for family income and maternal and infant characteristics.

CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight a significant potential risk posed by herpangina, a usually mild disease, among pregnant women.