Higher dose docosahexaenoic acid supplementation during pregnancy and early preterm birth: A randomised, double-blind, adaptive-design superiority trial

Study answer

What this study found

The 1000 mg/day DHA regimen was associated with a lower rate of early preterm birth than 200 mg/day, with the clearest benefit in participants with low baseline DHA status. Early preterm birth occurred in 9/540 (1.7%) in the 1000 mg group versus 12/492 (2.4%) in the 200 mg group, and the Bayesian posterior probability favored 1000 mg/day (0.81). Among participants with low DHA status (<6%), early preterm birth was 5/249 (2.0%) with 1000 mg versus 9/219 (4.1%) with 200 mg, with posterior probability 0.93. Among participants with high DHA status (>=6%), rates were similar: 4/289 (1.4%) versus…

Study & population

Randomized, double-blind, adaptive-design superiority trial in pregnant people with singleton pregnancies enrolled at 12 to 20 weeks' gestation at three large U.S.

Intervention

Oral docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) capsules were taken daily throughout pregnancy.

Key limitation

The primary outcome was uncommon, so event counts were small and some estimates are imprecise.

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Original abstract