Morris Kirsten
Public Health Registrar, Army Medical Services, Camberley, UK
BMJ Mil Health. 2025 Jul 23;171(4):301-305. doi: 10.1136/military-2023-002454.
Stress experienced during pregnancy is associated with adverse birth outcomes including preterm delivery (PTD) and low birth weight (LBW). Pregnant spouses and partners of deployed military personnel can experience heightened stress due to several factors associated with the military lifestyle. This systematic review aims to ascertain whether deployment at the time of delivery increases the risk of PTD and/or LBW in babies born to pregnant spouses or partners of deployed service persons.
A systematic review was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses method by searching EMBASE, Medline, PubMed and Global Health databases from inception to March 2021. Keyword searches were used to identify primary research, English language journal articles, that included any military branch and reported a measure of PTD and/or LBW of babies born to spouses/partners of deployed service persons. Risk of bias was assessed with validated tools appropriate for study type and a narrative synthesis was performed.
Three cohort or cross-sectional studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria. All three studies were conducted in the US military, were published between 2005 and 2016 and included a cumulative total of 11 028 participants. Evidence suggests that spousal deployment may be a risk factor for PTD, although strength of evidence is weak. No association between spousal deployment and LBW was found.
Pregnant spouses and partners of deployed military personnel may be at increased risk of PTD. The strength of evidence is limited by a paucity of rigorous research in this area. No studies were identified that included service women in the UK Armed Forces. Further research is required to understand the perinatal needs of pregnant spouses/partners of deployed service persons and to understand if there are unmet clinical or social needs in this population.
孕期经历的压力与不良分娩结局相关，包括早产（PTD）和低出生体重（LBW）。由于与军事生活方式相关的几个因素，部署军人的怀孕配偶和伴侣可能会经历更大的压力。本系统评价旨在确定分娩时的部署是否会增加部署军人的怀孕配偶或伴侣所生孩子的早产和/或低出生体重风险。
按照系统评价和荟萃分析的首选报告项目方法进行系统评价，通过检索EMBASE、Medline、PubMed和全球卫生数据库，检索时间从数据库建立至2021年3月。使用关键词搜索来识别主要研究，即英文期刊文章，这些文章包括任何军事分支，并报告了部署军人的配偶/伴侣所生孩子的早产和/或低出生体重情况。使用适合研究类型的经过验证的工具评估偏倚风险，并进行叙述性综合分析。
三项队列研究或横断面研究符合纳入标准。所有三项研究均在美国军队中进行，发表于2005年至2016年之间，累计共有11028名参与者。有证据表明，配偶部署可能是早产的一个风险因素，尽管证据力度较弱。未发现配偶部署与低出生体重之间存在关联。
部署军人的怀孕配偶和伴侣可能有更高的早产风险。该领域缺乏严格的研究，证据力度有限。未发现有研究纳入英国武装部队中的女性军人。需要进一步研究以了解部署军人的怀孕配偶/伴侣的围产期需求，以及该人群是否存在未满足的临床或社会需求。
