This article provides a summary of a landmark study in the area of preterm birth and neurodevelopmental outcomes. The researchers ask the question: Does administration of magnesium sulfate to women at risk for preterm birth reduce the risk of cerebral palsy? Starting with that question, this article describes the basics of the study including funding, study participant characteristics, study design, study intervention, endpoints, results, and criticism. The article briefly reviews other relevant studies and explores guidelines related to the role of magnesium in preterm patients. The BEAM trial did not demonstrate improvement in their combined primary outcome of stillbirth and infant death with use of antenatal magnesium sulfate; however, the work contributed to the literature with further evidence that antenatal magnesium sulfate can reduce the rate of cerebral palsy among surviving infants.
What we learned about the role of antenatal magnesium sulfate for the prevention of cerebral palsy