The forced break from the stresses of daily life prompted by pandemic lockdowns may have reduced the rate of planned preterm births at an Australian hospital, researchers suggest. 

Admissions for planned preterm caesarean and induced births more than halved at Brisbane’s Mater Mothers’ Hospital between March and April 2020, compared to the previous seven years, the study shows.

The rate of planned moderate/late preterm births during early COVID-19 restrictions was 29 per 1000 births compared with a seven year average of 64 per 1000 births.

“Self-isolation may have resulted in reduced work- and social-related stress, improved sleep quality and/or diet, with an overall improvement to pregnancy health,” the University of Queensland authors said in ANZJOG.