INTRODUCTION: Most biomarker studies of the effects of maternal smoking on fetal growth have been based on a single blood or urinary cotinine value, which is inadequate in capturing maternal tobacco exposure over the entire pregnancy. We used hair biomarkers to compare the associations of maternal self-reported smoking, hair nicotine, ...

To investigate whether initiating external cephalic version (ECV) earlier in pregnancy might increase the rate of successful ECV procedures, and be more effective in decreasing the rate of non-cephalic presentation at birth and of caesarean section. An unblinded multicentred randomised controlled trial. A total of 1543 women were randomised from ...

PURPOSE: The detection of fetal structural abnormalities is a routine part of antenatal care. Ultrasound examination policies vary among European countries. An additional ultrasound for fetal structural anomalies in the 3 rd trimester seems important for many reasons. Some abnormalities develop or first become apparent later in pregnancy. The aim ...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: First trimester screening for genetic diseases has become the predominant tool for selecting higher risk women in developed countries. As a consequence, chorionic villous sampling (CVS) is considered the most effective method for early diagnosis. The purpose of this review is to report recent updates related to ...

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate whether the location of the placental cord insertion (CI) at 11 to 13 weeks' gestation affects the maternal serum pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A). METHODS: Cohort study was conducted in patients who underwent the first trimester screening including nuchal translucency and blood test. We additionally documented the CI ...

OBJECTIVE: To provide a normal reference range for nasal bone length (NBL) during the second trimester of pregnancy in an Iranian population. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed on 3201 fetuses at 15 to 28 weeks of gestational age (GA). Both singleton and twin fetuses were evaluated. The relationship between ...

Objective: To investigate whether maternal serum levels of adiponectin in the first trimester are altered in pregnancies that subsequently deliver small for gestational age (SGA) neonates. Methods: Maternal serum adiponectin and pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) were measured at 11-13 weeks' gestation in 50 singleton normotensive pregnancies that delivered SGA ...

Developmental exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) disrupts reproduction in animals. Human data are lacking. We measured PCBs in preserved mothers' serum samples collected during 1960-1963, 1-3 days after their daughters' birth. We recorded time to pregnancy (TTP) in 289 daughters 28-31 years later. PCB congeners 187, 156, and 99 in ...

PURPOSE:: The clinical introduction of first trimester aneuploidy screening uniquely challenges the informed consent process for both patients and providers. This study investigated key aspects of the decision-making process for this new form of prenatal genetic screening. METHODS:: Qualitative data were collected by nine focus groups that comprised women of ...

BACKGROUND: Neural tube defects (NTDs) often result in fetal death or elective termination; therefore, not all cases are captured in typical hospital-based surveillance. We examined sociodemographic differences among pregnancy outcomes to assess sources of bias in NTD surveillance and research. METHODS: We used 1999 to 2005 Texas Birth Defects Registry ...

OBJECTIVE: Adequate maternal, intervillous and fetal blood flow are all necessary for fetal well-being. Compromise to any part of this exchange would be detrimental to pregnancy outcome. Pre-eclampsia is associated with reduced maternal spiral artery flow, resulting in reduced placental perfusion. This in turn creates an ischaemic environment, which may ...

Placental membranes mediate maternal-fetal exchange in all viviparous reptilian sauropsids. We used scanning electron microscopy to examine the placental interface in the mountain spiny lizard, Sceloporus jarrovi (Phrynosomatidae). From the late limb bud stage until birth, the conceptus is surrounded by placental membranes formed from the chorioallantois and yolk sac ...

BACKGROUND Late implantation and the pattern of early rise in hCG have been associated with early pregnancy loss. We explored factors that might be predictive of these markers of poor embryonic health in spontaneously conceived pregnancies. METHODS Participants in the North Carolina Early Pregnancy Study collected daily first-morning urine specimens ...

Infectious complications after chorionic villus sampling (CVS) are rare (<0.1%) but can lead to maternal sepsis and spontaneous abortion. We report the first bacteremia with Atopobium vaginae and suggest A. vaginae to be a pathogenic microorganism that can lead to intrauterine infection and fetal death following CVS.

Both angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACE-Is) and angiotensin receptor antagonists (ARBs) have been reported to be associated with an excess of congenital abnormalities in infants born to women who took these drugs in pregnancy. To investigate this possible association further, we have examined the outcome in 91 pregnancies in which the ...

Obesity among pregnant women is becoming one of the most important women's health issues. Obesity is associated with increased risk of almost all pregnancy complications: gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus, delivery of large-for-GA infants, and higher incidence of congenital defects all occur more frequently than in women with a ...

Objective. To investigate pregnancy outcome of patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Methods. A retrospective cohort study comparing pregnancies of women with and without FMS was conducted. Multivariable logistic regression models was performed to control for confounders Results. Deliveries of 112 women with FMS were compared with a control group of 487 deliveries of ...

Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy is the most common liver disease occurring in the second half of pregnancy, characterized by pruritus and elevated serum bile acids often coupled to abnormal liver tests. Maternal prognosis is favourable with a complete symptom resolution after delivery, while preterm deliveries, fetal respiratory distress and stillbirths ...

Teenage primigravida cause high morbidity and mortality to mother and fetus. To compare obstetric outcomes of teenage pregnancy with reproductive-age pregnancy (20-34 years), with a focus on the risk of low birth weight and anemia. A historical cohort study of 2922 primigravida women who gave birth between January 2005 and ...

Bad pregnancy outcomes have been associated with increased activation of the coagulation cascade and inflammation, in particular the activation of the complement cascade. Recent studies have suggested that inflammatory processes modulate thrombogenic pathways and vice versa. We studied the cross-talk between the coagulation and the complement cascade in the pathogenesis ...

Microparticles (MPs) are shed from cell membranes of a variety of cells, promote thrombus formation, mediate pro-inflammatory effects and may cause endothelial dysfunction. Normal pregnancy is characterized by increased levels of MPs compared to non-pregnant healthy women but the prevalence, cell origin and the role of MPs in pregnancy-related complications ...

OBJECTIVE:: Elective repeat cesarean delivery at 37 or 38 weeks compared with 39 completed weeks of gestation is associated with adverse neonatal outcomes. We assessed whether delivery before 39 weeks is justifiable on the basis of decreased adverse maternal outcomes. METHODS:: We conducted a cohort study of women with live ...

Abstract Objective: Despite the data that major depressive disorder (MDD) is common during pregnancy and that pregnant women prefer nonmedication treatment options, there is a paucity of research examining alternative treatments for this special population. We present the results of an open label pilot study examining treatment with transcranial magnetic ...

Presence of inherited thrombophilia is an additional risk factor for maternal thromboembolism and certain adverse pregnancy outcomes, including recurrent fetal loss, placental abruption, intrauterine growth restriction and early-onset severe preeclampsia. Pregnant women with thrombophilia, especially those with antithrombin (AT) deficiency, are at high risk of both kinds of complications. We ...

This series describes a single center's experience in follow-up and management of fetuses with an isolated fetal intra-abdominal umbilical vein varix. All cases with a fetal intra-abdominal umbilical vein varix that were diagnosed or referred to our medical center over 15 years were followed and managed. The definition of a ...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety of the human papillomavirus (HPV) bivalent and quadrivalent vaccines in pregnancy. DATA SOURCES: PubMed (1966-August 2010) was searched using the terms human papillomavirus, human papillomavirus vaccine, and pregnancy. References were reviewed for relevant information. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION: All studies including humans that were ...

BACKGROUND: To determine the predictive value of fetal nuchal translucency (NT) measurements in the detection of chromosomopathy. METHODS: The investigation of NT included 317 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies of gestational age of 11 to 14 weeks with pathological karyotype. The control group consisted of pregnant women whose amniocentesis findings ...

It may be difficult to differentiate the consecutive occurrence of two independent molar pregnancies from gestational trophoblastic neoplasia after the initial molar pregnancy, especially when the interval between them is short. A 25-year-woman who had had a complete hydatidiform mole 6 months earlier presented with a 6-week history of secondary ...

To compare perinatal outcome and near-miss morbidities between placenta previa versus abruptio placentae in patients of antepartum haemorrhage (APH). Cross-sectional, analytical study. Gynaecology Unit II, Civil Hospital, Karachi, from August 2007 to July 2009. Patients with APH diagnosed as placenta previa and abruptio placentae who delivered after 24 weeks of ...

: To estimate maternal morbidity associated with uterine evacuation for second-trimester fetal demise compared with that associated with induced second-trimester abortion. : This retrospective cohort study compared the maternal outcomes of two cohorts: 1) women diagnosed with fetal demise between 14 and 24 weeks who subsequently underwent dilation and evacuation ...

To compare the distribution of placental protein 13 (PP13) in fetal and maternal blood and amnionic fluid and to correlate it with PP13 protein and mRNA in the placenta. Umbilical arterial serum, amnionic fluid, maternal venous serum and placental tissues were collected from normal outcome pregnancies (N = 63) (GA>37), early onset ...

Fetal monitoring is required to avoid hypoxic injury during ex utero intrapartum treatment (EXIT). We performed a tracheostomy under EXIT in a case of suspected airway obstruction caused by a cervical teratoma. The scalp electrode was applied for continuous fetal heart rate monitoring. This device enabled us to promptly deal ...

Background: Müllerian duct anomalies occur in 0.1% to 3% of women, and they are often associated with reproductive problems such as miscarriage, premature labour, premature rupture of the membranes, or malpresentation. Having a twin pregnancy in a patient with a bicornuate uterus (uterus bicornis unicollis) is rare, especially if it ...

Adolescents are at a greater risk of adverse pregnancy outcome, including spontaneous preterm delivery and fetal growth restriction, and typically have a poorer-quality diet than adults have. In the present study, we addressed the hypothesis that low maternal dietary intake of n-3 long-chain PUFA (LCP) status adversely influences pregnancy outcome. ...

: To estimate the prevalence of prenatal alcohol consumption and the extent of provider screening and discussion about alcohol use during pregnancy. : Data were obtained from a stratified random sample of 12,611 mothers from Maryland who delivered live infants during the years 2001-2008 and completed the Maryland Pregnancy Risk ...

Fetal safety has never been studied for any drug used in the treatment of hemorrhoids. Proctofoam-HC is a combination of a corticosteroid and a local anaesthetic that is proven effective for the treatment of hemorrhoids. The objective of this study was to assess prospectively the fetal safety of third trimester ...

OBJECTIVE: Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder with a high carrier frequency in the general population. The severity of this disorder indicates the importance of early prenatal detection. In medical literature, there are a few published case reports of enlarged nuchal translucency (NT) measurement in association ...

We have observed the inconsistent findings from various studies on twin pregnancy outcomes obtained by assisted reproductive technology and spontaneous conception. In most studies, however, the concrete chorionicity, regarded as a confounding factor for predicting the perinatal outcomes of twin pregnancies, has not been determined. The purpose of this study ...

This study determined ultrasonographic parameters of fetuses and uterine adnexa in late pregnancy in normal, cloned, and high-risk pregnancies in relation to perinatal and neonatal outcome. Ten cows with normal pregnancies (CONTROL, mean pregnancy length 273 d), 10 sick cows with potentially compromised pregnancies (HIGH-RISK, mean pregnancy length 267 d), ...

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of prenatal diagnostic features, particularly congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation volume ratio (CVR), in predicting outcomes for fetuses with lung masses. The records and imaging features of all fetuses referred to the Texas Children's Fetal Center with a fetal lung mass ...

To compare the efficacy, safety and cost-effectiveness of Manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) with Electrical vacuum aspiration (EVA) in the management of first trimester pregnancy loss. A single-centre randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted at Maternal and Child Health Centre (MCHC), Unit-I, Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad from April ...

: To estimate pregnancy and neonatal outcomes in women with decreased amniotic fluid index (AFI) between 24 and 34 weeks of gestation, compared with outcomes in those with normal AFI. : This is a review of singleton pregnancies that received ultrasound examinations at 24-34 weeks from 1997 to 2008. If ...

: The management of inherited hypokalemia has improved and the issue of pregnancy has become important. : Between 1992 and 2010, five Italian women with the clinical diagnosis of Gitelman syndrome gave birth to a total of six newborns. Pregnancy was uneventful in four women but was complicated by tiredness ...

Prenatal alcohol exposure is a cause of congenital brain malformations such as hydrocephalus; however, a complete mechanism accounting for this phenomenon has yet to be discovered. We report a case of a newborn who was exposed to alcohol throughout pregnancy and presented with low serum vitamin A and hydrocephalus. To ...

Among pregnancy pathologies preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction are among the leading causes of maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. For both syndromes, the etiologies are still unclear in many facets. For the development of preeclampsia the presence of the placenta is a prerequisite, while for FGR a variety of ...

The choice of anticoagulant agent for pregnant women with mechanical prosthetic heart valves introduces a clinical dilemma for women and the clinicians caring for them. Options include continuing oral anticoagulants (OAC) such as warfarin throughout pregnancy, switching from warfarin to unfractionated heparin or low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) in the ...

Objective. We seek to expand on a biopsychosocial framework underlying the etiology of excess preterm birth experienced by African-American women by exploring short inter-pregnancy intervals as a partial explanatory factor. Methods. We determine whether inter-pregnancy interval is associated with preterm birth, what the underlying causal mechanism may be, whether African-American ...

Objective: To determine selected maternal and neonatal adverse outcomes at repeat cesarean delivery compared with repeat vaginal delivery. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Lyari General Hospital, Karachi, from January 2005 to December 2008. Methodology: Healthy pregnant women at 28-42 weeks of second singleton pregnancy were selected ...

: Primary dermatologic findings are not thought to be associated with intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. We report on a patient with twins who presented with a pruritic rash and cholestasis. : A woman with a twin gestation and two previous term stillbirths developed a pruritic rash at 16 weeks. Scleral ...

Objectives-The purpose of this study was to establish in utero reference ranges for the fetal umbilical cord insertion-to-genital tubercle length in early gestation. Methods-A prospective cross-sectional study was performed on 140 normal low-risk singleton pregnancies between 12 and 18 weeks' gestation. The umbilical cord insertion-to-genital tubercle length was measured in ...