RxPG News : Obstetrics

Predictor of miscarriages

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:35:21 PST

A medical team from the University of Leicester has been able to establish for the first time a predictor for pregnant women who may have miscarriages and those who won’t. Their research is published in the highly prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association.

Elevated autoantibodies linked to preeclampsia

Thu, 15 Mar 2007 08:31:24 PST

Women who develop preeclampsia during pregnancy are more likely to develop certain dangerous autoantibodies than women with normal pregnancies, and these autoantibodies are still present two years after childbirth in about 20 percent of women who had the disorder, scientists from the University of Pittsburgh report in the March issue of Hypertension, the journal of the American Heart Association.

Vitamin D intake inadequate during pregnancy

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 23:01:07 PST

Even regular use of prenatal multivitamin supplements is not adequate to prevent vitamin D insufficiency, University of Pittsburgh researchers report in the current issue of the Journal of Nutrition, the publication of the American Society for Nutrition. A condition linked to rickets and other musculoskeletal and health complications, vitamin D insufficiency was found to be widespread among women during pregnancy, particularly in the northern latitudes.

Non-invasive alternative to amniocentesis ?

Sun, 11 Feb 2007 04:20:07 PST

Research studies demonstrating the viability of an approach to routinely detect the presence of fetal DNA in a mother's blood to accurately diagnose or rule out genetic defects -- as early as the first trimester -- was presented today at the 27th Annual Meeting of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine being held in San Francisco. This future diagnostic technology, currently under development at Sequenom, Inc. (Nasdaq: SQNM), shows promise that a universal alternative to such invasive genetic screening procedures as amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling, may be available in the future.

Advanced Maternal Age is an Independent Predictor of Intrauterine Fetal Death at Term

Sun, 11 Feb 2007 04:07:11 PST

Pregnancy at age 40 and beyond is an independent risk factor for intrauterine fetal demise or stillbirth, according to an abstract presented by Yale School of Medicine researchers at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine Conference February 10 in San Francisco.

Eat fruit and vegetables to cut miscarriage risk

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 17:58:13 PST

London, Dec 5 - Including fruit and vegetables in one's daily diet could reduce the chances of miscarriage by almost half, says a new research that stresses the importance of a healthy, balanced diet during pregnancy.

Children born to younger mothers may live longer

Mon, 27 Nov 2006 16:50:06 PST

Washington, Nov 27 - Children of younger mothers may live longer as the women are less likely to have acquired latent infections that could harm the health of the foetus, says scientists.

Medical induction of labor increases risk of amniotic-fluid embolism

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 23:31:00 PST

A Canadian population-based cohort study has revealed that medical induction of labour increases the risk of amniotic-fluid embolism. The study was led by Dr. Michael Kramer, Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Senior Investigator from McGill University. Amniotic-fluid embolism (AFE) is a rare, but serious and even fatal maternal complication of delivery. While its cause is unknown, it is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality in developed countries, accounting for seven of 44 direct maternal deaths in Canada in the period 1997-2000.

Senior obstetrician are less hasty about caesarean sections

Fri, 22 Sep 2006 16:59:00 PST

Many emergency caesareans could be prevented by the attendance of a more skilled obstetrician, say senior doctors in this week's BMJ.

Carbon monoxide may be beneficial in pre-eclampsia

Wed, 06 Sep 2006 00:44:00 PST

New findings by Queen's University researchers suggest that administering low doses of carbon monoxide to pregnant women may help prevent the potentially damaging effects to mother and baby of pre-eclampsia.

Prenatal diagnostic tests decrease the risk of miscarriage

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 17:02:00 PST

Pregnant women who seek prenatal diagnostic testing to identify genetic or chromosomal abnormalities have a lower risk of miscarriage than previously believed, according to a UCSF study.

Miscarriage significantly associated with increasing paternal age

Sun, 06 Aug 2006 06:51:00 PST

In a study conducted at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and the New York Psychiatric Institute researchers found that increasing paternal age is significantly associated with increased rates of spontaneous abortion, a pregnancy loss occurring before twenty weeks of gestation. Results indicate that as the male partner ages there is a steady increase in rate of miscarriage. Women with partners aged 35 or older had nearly three times as many miscarriages as compared with women conceiving with men younger than 25 years of age. This finding is independent of the woman's age and not explained by other factors such as diabetes, smoking, or previous spontaneous abortions, and adds to the growing realization of the importance of paternal characteristics for successful reproductive outcome.

Clinical examination not sensitive enough to detect breech babies

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:33:00 PST

The routine examination doctors use to check if a baby is lying in the correct position before birth is not sensitive enough, concludes a study published on bmj.com today. The authors suggest that there is room for improvement by all pregnancy care providers. The position of a baby in the womb in late pregnancy is important because if it is not lying in the normal head-down position (known as cephalic presentation) vaginal delivery may be difficult or impossible. Diagnosis of non-cephalic presentation after the onset of labour is associated with increased complications and death. Fetal presentation is usually assessed by palpating the abdomen, but little is known about the accuracy of this in late pregnancy. So researchers in Australia decided to examine the diagnostic accuracy of this procedure.

Preeclampsia risk reduced by regular multivitamins near time of conception

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 09:02:00 PST

Women who are considering becoming pregnant may significantly reduce their risk of developing a common life-threatening complication called preeclampsia by taking a multivitamin supplement regularly three months before conception and during the first trimester of pregnancy. This finding is being reported in a University of Pittsburgh study available online now through an "advance access" feature of the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Why Listeriosis rates are 20-fold higher during pregnancy

Wed, 05 Jul 2006 15:04:00 PST

For years, doctors have puzzled over why pregnant women are 20 times more likely than others to be infected by the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, now think they have the answer, and it isn't pretty.

Why birth interventions are on the rise

Fri, 23 Jun 2006 14:19:00 PST

C-sections, amniocentesis, spinal blocks, CVS testing - having a baby might be one of the most natural things in the world, but a University of Western Sydney conference will explore why growing numbers of Australian women want modern medicine to intervene in the 'risky business' of childbirth.

Pregnancy Complications Still High For Women With Diabetes

Tue, 20 Jun 2006 23:53:00 PST

The risk of death and major birth defects are still high in babies born to women with diabetes, despite an international strategy to raise standards of diabetes care, say researchers in a study published on bmj.com. They also warn that these problems will get worse as the number of young women diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 diabetes continues to rise. Researchers analysed deaths shortly after birth (perinatal mortality) and congenital anomalies in babies born to women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes who delivered between 1 March 2002 and 28 February 2003 in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Researchers identify protein associated with severe preeclampsia

Mon, 05 Jun 2006 17:04:00 PST

Building on their earlier discovery which found that elevated levels of the sFlt1 placental protein leads to the onset of preeclampsia, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), in collaboration with a research team from The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, have identified a second protein which, in combination with sFlt1, escalates preeclampsia to a severe and life-threatening state. These new findings, reported in the June 4, 2006 on-line issue of Nature Medicine, provide another critical piece of information about this puzzling disease, which complicates five percent of all pregnancies worldwide and is a major cause of maternal and fetal mortality, particularly in developing nations.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) cause difficulties during childbirth

Sat, 03 Jun 2006 08:43:00 PST

The first comprehensive study of the effects of female genital mutilation on women and babies during childbirth has been published by leading medical journal, The Lancet. The study, which provides the first reliable evidence that female genital mutilation can adversely affect birth outcomes, was undertaken by African and international researchers, including Associate Professor Emily Banks from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at ANU.

Study Challenges Myth that Sex Late in Pregnancy Hastens Birth

Sat, 03 Jun 2006 00:57:00 PST

A new study debunks the widely held belief that engaging in sexual intercourse during the final weeks of pregnancy can hasten labor and delivery. In fact, just the opposite was true in 93 women studied at Ohio State University Medical Center. Women who were sexually active in the final three weeks of their pregnancies carried their babies an average of 39.9 weeks, compared to average delivery at 39.3 weeks among women who abstained from sexual activity at term.

Longer labour for obese women

Sun, 14 May 2006 18:25:00 PST

The take home message is that doctors need to tell obese women that electing to have labor induced can place them at higher risk of longer labor and could increase the possibility that they will need a cesarean section.

Low intake of milk during pregnancy linked to decreased birth weight

Tue, 25 Apr 2006 19:59:00 PST

A new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal gives expectant mothers yet another reason to drink their milk. Researchers found that women who rarely drank milk during their pregnancy gave birth to smaller babies compared to women who drank more milk.

Pregnancy gap puts baby at risk

Thu, 20 Apr 2006 15:42:00 PST

Spacing pregnancies too closely or too far apart can increase the risk of premature birth for the second baby, suggests a study.

High meat intake by pregnant women not advisable

Mon, 03 Apr 2006 15:22:00 PST

Babies of women who eat high protein, including meat, and low carbohydrate diets during pregnancy may develop stress, says a study.

Antioxidant tempol prevents pre-eclampsia

Mon, 03 Apr 2006 15:15:00 PST

The antioxidant tempol prevents the onset of pre-eclampsia in pregnant mice, a finding that further implicates oxidative stress in the illness, which is widespread among pregnant women.

High vitamin doses may harm pregnant mother

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 17:51:00 PST

High doses of vitamin supplements may cause harm to pregnant women and their children, says a study.

Daughters of Indian immigrants continue trend of giving birth to small babies

Thu, 30 Mar 2006 14:53:00 PST

U.S.-born Asian-Indian women are more likely than their Mexican-American peers to deliver low birth weight infants, despite having fewer risk factors, say researchers at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and Stanford's School of Medicine. The finding confirms previous research that showed a similar pattern in more recent immigrants, and suggests that physicians should consider their patients' ethnic backgrounds when planning their care.

Non-pneumatic anti-shock garment holds promise in preventing deaths due to obstetrical hemorrhage

Mon, 27 Feb 2006 17:31:00 PST

A simple, low-tech garment has the potential to prevent a major cause of death among women who give birth in many Third World countries, according to a new study by maternal health researchers.

Stress levels could lead to miscarriages

Fri, 24 Feb 2006 02:27:00 PST

Pregnant women who exhibit signs of stress are three times more likely to face the risk of miscarriage, says a study. Around 31 to 89 percent of all conceptions result in miscarriage, earlier studies indicated. Most studies begin when women notice they are pregnant, about six weeks after conception. Most miscarriages, however, are known to happen during the first three weeks of pregnancy.

Diagnosing preeclampsia with proteomic analysis

Sat, 04 Feb 2006 21:29:00 PST

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have found that analyzing proteins in urine is a simple and objective method to diagnose and classify preeclampsia (PE), a complication of pregnancy causing high blood pressure after 20 weeks of gestation.

Nervous fathers can be a 'pain' during childbirth

Thu, 26 Jan 2006 16:35:00 PST

Anxious men pass on their fears to mothers giving birth by Caesarean section, says a study that suggests that early preparation can help reassure both partners about the procedure.

Stress could cause death of male foetus

Wed, 25 Jan 2006 14:14:00 PST

Stress during a disaster particularly after natural calamities like earthquakes and severe famine can cause the death of weaker male foetus but those that survive may live longer than the average, says a study.

Normal delivery better for sex life - study

Thu, 19 Jan 2006 15:38:00 PST

Women who give birth naturally may have better sex life than those who opt for caesarean birth, says a study that warns both prospective mothers and healthcare professionals to think again.

Why, throughout the world, more boys are born?

Mon, 19 Dec 2005 15:33:00 PST

The longer it takes to get pregnant, the more chance there is of having a boy, finds a study in this weeks BMJ. Dutch researchers analysed data for 5,283 women who gave birth to single babies between July 2001 and July 2003. Among the 498 women who took longer than 12 months to get pregnant, the probability of male offspring was nearly 58%, whereas the proportion of male births among the 4,785 women with shorter times to pregnancy was 51%.

Prepregnancy Weight Increasing, may mean more complications

Sat, 17 Dec 2005 15:53:00 PST

A growing number of women are overweight or obese when they become pregnant, a condition that is risky to both mother and baby, a new study conducted by researchers at the University at Buffalo has shown. An analysis of the prepregnancy body mass index of more than 79,000 women in eight counties of Western New York who became pregnant between 1999 and 2003 found that the number of women who were overweight when they became pregnant increased by 11 percent and the number who were obese increased by 8 percent over that time period.

Childbirth not linked to urinary incontinence

Fri, 02 Dec 2005 18:59:00 PST

Postmenopausal women who have given birth vaginally do not appear to suffer from urinary incontinence at higher rates than their sisters who have never given birth, according to a University of Rochester Medical Center study published in the December Obstetrics and Gynecology journal.

Down Syndrome now Detectable at 11 Weeks

Thu, 10 Nov 2005 20:02:00 PST

A new study from Columbia University Medical Center researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia of more than 38,000 pregnant women at 15 U.S. centers demonstrates the high accuracy of non-invasive screening for Down syndrome (also known as trisomy 21) in the first trimester of pregnancy, at 11 weeks. The findings are a significant advantage over the current standard screening, a blood test performed in the second trimester of pregnancy. Published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine (Nov. 10, 2005 issue), the study is known as the FASTER trial (First and Second Trimester Evaluation of Risk). It was funded by a $13 million grant from the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development one of the largest ever grants for an obstetrical study.

Effect of sublingual misoprostol on severe postpartum haemorrhage

Thu, 06 Oct 2005 15:31:00 PST

A relatively cheap and easy to use drug could save the lives of thousands of women in the developing world, according to a study in recent BMJ.

Recurrence of pre-eclampsia across generations

Mon, 19 Sep 2005 16:29:00 PST

Genes from both the mother and father can trigger pre-eclampsia, finds a study published online by the BMJ.

Recurrence of pre-eclampsia across generations

Mon, 19 Sep 2005 16:29:00 PST

Genes from both the mother and father can trigger pre-eclampsia, finds a study published online by the BMJ.

Methoxychlor (MXC) may reduce female fertility

Tue, 13 Sep 2005 04:25:00 PST

Methoxychlor (MXC), a common insect pesticide used on food crops, may interfere with proper development and function of the reproductive tract, leading to reduced fertility in women, researchers at Yale School of Medicine write in the August issue of Endocrinology.

Folic acid link with low birth weight

Tue, 06 Sep 2005 00:06:00 PST

Mothers-to-be with lower levels of the vitamin folate in their body during early pregnancy are more likely to have babies with lower, or less healthy, birth weights, a study has revealed.

Meconium aspiration syndrome rsik not reduced by amnioinfusion

Sun, 04 Sep 2005 07:13:00 PST

An international randomized trial, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), has revealed that amnioinfusion, the infusion of saline into the uterus, does not reduce the risk of meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS), as previously believed. The study, which is led by Dr. William Fraser from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecolgy of the Université de Montréal and the Maternal-Child Health Centre associated with Ste-Justine's Hospital, is published in today's issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

Trichostatin A (TSA) could aid premature labour

Tue, 14 Jun 2005 03:16:00 PST

An anti-cancer drug could potentially be the first effective treatment for the many thousands of premature births that occur worldwide each year, scientific tests have found.

Routine procedure during childbirth provides no benefits

Sat, 07 May 2005 19:23:00 PST

According to a systematic review of existing studies, to appear in the May 4 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the surgical procedure known as an episiotomy, performed in up to 35 percent of U.S. vaginal births, usually provides no benefits.

Prenatal sonography has no effect on the Intellectual Capacity

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 16:18:00 PST

Fears have been expressed that sonography can lead to diminished intellectual capacity, explains Helle Kieler, research scientist at Karolinska Institutet.

Study supports use of aspirin in treating pregnancy disorder

Wed, 23 Mar 2005 00:12:00 PST

A new study led by Queens University researcher Colin Funk provides indirect support for the use of low-dose aspirin therapy in preventing and treating pre-eclampsia a pregnancy disorder that is often harmful to both mother and fetus.

Birthing a new model of aspirin therapy in preeclampsia

Fri, 18 Mar 2005 23:03:00 PST

Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder that occurs during pregnancy and can be detrimental to the health of the developing fetus and the mother. Low-dose aspirin therapy has been used to treat preeclampsia, but this strategy is controversial some researchers believe that it prevents preeclampsia while others find it increases related complications.

Acupuncture Relieves Pelvic Girdle Pain during Pregnancy

Fri, 18 Mar 2005 15:45:00 PST

Acupuncture and strengthening exercises help relieve pelvic girdle pain during pregnancy and are effective complements to standard treatment, finds a study published online by the BMJ today.

Preimplantation Sex Selection Popular Among Infertile Women

Fri, 11 Mar 2005 16:06:00 PST

A new survey says a significant number of women being treated for infertility would choose the sex of their next child if given the option -- and those as yet childless would choose baby girls and boys in approximately equal numbers.

UKOSS - World first for study of rare disorders of pregnancy and childbirth

Thu, 03 Mar 2005 17:33:00 PST

Rare disorders of pregnancy are such that most practising midwives and obstetricians will see fewer than one case in a year. Some are so infrequent that health professionals may see only one case in a working lifetime, making it difficult to build up sufficient individual expertise to be confident as to the appropriate clinical management.

A Novel Approach to Identify Patients at Risk for Preterm Delivery

Thu, 10 Feb 2005 17:11:00 PST

For the first time, researchers have successfully profiled the amniotic fluid metabolome (the sum of all metabolic processes occurring in the amniotic fluid), in order to identify which women who have experienced preterm labor are also at risk for delivering a premature baby. With nearly one in eight babies in the U.S. born prematurely every year, and the problem of premature birth increasing, the need for tools that can identify preterm delivery risk has never been greater, experts say.

Least forceful way to deliver a baby whose shoulders are stuck in the birth canal

Mon, 03 Jan 2005 18:41:00 PST

Johns Hopkins researchers, using a novel birthing simulator designed by biomedical engineering faculty, staff and students at the University, have identified what may be the least forceful way to deliver a baby whose shoulders are stuck in the birth canal.

Shoulder dystocia, in which the baby's shoulders won't move past the mother's bony pelvis during delivery, occurs in about 5 percent of births. Of these, up to a quarter of deliveries may result in an injury to the baby's brachial plexus, the nerves that control movement and sensation in the arm. As many as 10 percent of infants may sustain some permanent damage.

No level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy has been determined safe

Mon, 27 Dec 2004 23:23:00 PST

Alcohol use during pregnancy is associated with health problems that adversely affect the mother and fetus; no level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy has been determined safe. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is recognized as the foremost preventable condition involving neurobehavioral and developmental abnormalities.
Women who drink during pregnancy place themselves at risk for having a child with FAS or fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD).

Safety of childbirth after C-section examined

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 18:10:00 PST

The most definitive study to date of women who had previously undergone cesarean-section deliveries, but who later chose an attempt at vaginal delivery for subsequent births, shows that serious complications are possible, but that the absolute risk of these occurring is very small.

The multicenter study was sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Maternal Fetal Medicine Units Network a part of the National Institutes of Health.

Second cesarean section is safer than normal delivery

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 16:07:00 PST

For a pregnant woman who already has had one cesarean delivery, an attempt at vaginal delivery is more dangerous for the baby than a second cesarean section, according to a research study at 19 academic health centers, including Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.