Pregnancy

Rectus sheath hematoma (RSH) is one of the surgical emergencies that mimics peritonitis or other causes of acute abdominal pain. It is usually seen in old age, post-trauma, anticoagulation therapy pregnancy, chronic cough, and liver disease. Nevertheless, RSHs can be spontaneous without any underlying predisposing factors. Here, we present a 51-year-old female with sudden onset abdominal pain, abdominal distention, hypotension, and severe pallor. After initial resuscitation, the patient underwent radiological imaging...

Wernicke's encephalopathy (WE) is an acute neuropsychiatric emergency due to thiamine deficiency. This report includes a case of a young pregnant female in her second trimester (17th weeks) complaining of hyperemesis gravidarum, who, due to excessive vomiting, developed severe vitamin B1 deficiency, leading to WE and Korsakoff's psychosis. The typical triad of confusion, ocular signs, and ataxia is fundamental for the diagnosis of WE, yet not all cases present with the entire triad; however, our patient presented with all the symptoms...

OBJECTIVE: This study quantified the prevalence of postpartum mood and anxiety disorder (PMAD) diagnoses among symptomatic Michigan Medicaid enrollees and explored factors associated with receiving a diagnosis. METHODS: Data sources comprised Michigan Medicaid administrative claims and Phase 7 Michigan Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (MI-PRAMS) survey responses, linked at the individual level. Participants were continuously enrolled in Michigan Medicaid, delivered a live birth (2012-2015), responded to the survey, and screened positive for PMAD symptoms on the adapted two-item Patient Health Questionnaire...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate patient preference for short (gist) or detailed/extensive decision aids (DA) for genetic testing at ovarian cancer (OC) diagnosis. DESIGN: Cohort study set within recruitment to the Systematic Genetic Testing for Personalised Ovarian Cancer Therapy (SIGNPOST) study (ISRCTN: 16988857). SETTING: North-East London Cancer Network (NELCN) population. POPULATION/SAMPLE: Women with high-grade non-mucinous epithelial OC...

OBJECTIVE: This study seeks to examine the impact of war on maternal mortality following an exacerbation in the dynamics of inequality in maternal health caused by the continuing conflict. DESIGN: Community-based cross-sectional study. SETTING: Tigray region of Northern Ethiopia, between November 2020 and May 2022. POPULATION: This study surveyed a total of 189 087 households from six of the seven zones of Tigray in 121 tabiyas from 31 districts selected...

OBJECTIVE: There is increasing evidence supporting the clinical utility of next generation sequencing for identifying fetal genetic disorders. However, there are limited data on the demand for and accessibility of these tests, as well as payer coverage in the prenatal context. We sought to identify clinician perspectives on the utility of prenatal exome sequencing (ES) and on equitable access to genomic technologies for the care of pregnancies complicated by fetal structural anomalies...

INTRODUCTION: Hydroceles of the canal of Nuck are rare, and have not been described in relation to pregnancy. CASE PRESENTATION: A 34-year-old Caucasian female patient had bilateral groin swelling debuted during her pregnancy. A preoperative magnetic resonance imaging scan found bilateral hydroceles of the canal of Nuck. Operative findings and histological examinations revealed a left-sided inguinal hernia and a right-sided hydrocele. The patient was discharged well and without signs of postoperative complications or hernia recurrence...

Bangladesh has made laudable progress in maternal and child health (MCH). Maternal and child mortalities have reduced substantially accompanied by stellar rise in immunization and contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR). However, such success is distributed unevenly throughout and the country is among one of the top ten countries with highest number of neonatal and under-five children mortalities. Rural Bangladesh is home to more than half of the country's total population. Yet, disparity in access to healthcare services and information are overt in these areas...

BACKGROUND: Women with pre-pregnancy obesity have an increased risk of retaining or gaining weight postpartum and may benefit from weight loss treatment. However, evidence is lacking for weight loss strategies in women with BMIs in the higher obesity classes. A dietary treatment for postpartum weight loss resulted in a 10% weight reduction in lactating women with a mean BMI of 30 kg/m2 . We aimed to examine the effects of this dietary treatment on changes in weight, markers of lipid and glucose metabolism, waist and hip circumference and postpartum weight retention (PPWR) in postpartum women with higher BMIs than tested previously...

BACKGROUND: Since 2007 all pregnant women in the Netherlands are offered the second-trimester anomaly scan (SAS) in a nationwide prenatal screening program. This study aims to assess the level of informed choice of women opting for the SAS and to evaluate the presence of routinization 16 years after its implementation. It further explores decisional conflict and women's decision making. METHODS: This prospective national survey study consisted of an online questionnaire which was completed after prenatal counseling and before undergoing the SAS...

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Air pollution exposure was known to result in body impairments by inducing inflammation and oxidation. But little is known about the associations of air pollutants with plasma fatty acid profile which may play important roles in the impairment of air pollutants based on the related mechanism, especially in pregnant women. This study aimed to explore the relationships of air pollution exposure with plasma fatty acid profile and the potential effect modification by pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). Based on a cohort in Wuhan, China, we measured concentrations of plasma fatty acids of 519 pregnant women enrolled from 2013 to 2016 by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)...

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically altered the psychosocial environment of pregnant women and new mothers. In addition, prenatal infection is a known risk factor for altered fetal development. Here we examine joint effects of maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy on infant attention at 6 months postpartum. METHOD: One-hundred and sixty-seven pregnant mothers and infants (40% non-White; n = 71 females) were recruited in New York City (n = 50 COVID+, n = 117 COVID-)...

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality for women globally. Sex differences exist in the relative risks conferred by traditional CVD risk factors, including diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and smoking. Additionally, there are female-specific risk factors, including age of menarche and menopause, polycystic ovary syndrome, infertility and the use of assisted reproductive technology, spontaneous pregnancy loss, parity, and adverse pregnancy outcomes, as well as female-predominant conditions such as autoimmune diseases, migraines, and depression, that enhance women's cardiovascular risk across the lifespan...

BACKGROUND: Preeclampsia screening is a critical component of antenatal care worldwide. Currently, the most developed screening test for preeclampsia at 11 to 13 weeks' gestation integrates maternal demographic characteristics and medical history with 3 biomarkers-serum placental growth factor, mean arterial pressure, and uterine artery pulsatility index-to identify approximately 75% of women who develop preterm preeclampsia with delivery before 37 weeks of gestation. It is generally accepted that further improvements to preeclampsia screening require the use of additional biomarkers...

BACKGROUND: Maternal problems in the postpartum period may lead to suboptimal long-term health for women and could affect mother-child attachment. Social disadvantage is a risk factor for preterm birth, which carries its own burden of health issues and stress. The main aim of this study was to investigate the role for social factors in mothers' physical and emotional health-related quality of life (HRQoL) at 1 year after a preterm birth. METHODS: EPIPAGE-2 is a French nationwide, prospective, population-based cohort of preterm children born before 35 weeks' gestation (N=3614 women)...

BACKGROUND: Globally, the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is currently rising. Assessing GDM knowledge and taking various public health actions will help pregnant women know more about the condition, resulting in its prevention. OBJECTIVE: To assess pregnant women's knowledge of GDM and associated factors at antenatal care clinics of public hospitals in the North Shewa zone, Oromia region, Central Ethiopia. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study...

OBJECTIVES: Pregnancy is a vulnerable period for women's health, and health practices play an essential role in this period. This study aimed to determine the relationship between health practices with attitudes toward pregnancy and motherhood and pregnancy symptoms. DESIGN: It was a cross-sectional study using cluster sampling conducted on 351 pregnant women in 2021-2022. Data were collected using questionnaires of socio-demographic characteristics, health practices in pregnancy (Health Practices Questionnaire-II), attitude towards motherhood and pregnancy (Prenatal Attitudes Towards motherhood and Pregnancy) and pregnancy symptoms (Pregnancy Symptoms Inventory)...

BACKGROUND: The metabolic changes that ultimately lead to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) likely begin before pregnancy. Cannabis use might increase the risk of GDM by increasing appetite or promoting fat deposition and adipogenesis. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to assess the association between preconception cannabis use and GDM incidence. METHODS: We analysed individual-level data from eight prospective cohort studies. We identified the first, or index, pregnancy (lasting ≥20 weeks of gestation with GDM status) after cannabis use...

BACKGROUND: Spontaneous preterm birth significantly increases the risk for a recurrent preterm birth (rPTB). Few identifiable clinical risk factors exist in counseling of rPTB. Furthermore, treatment with progesterone supplementation has not consistently prevented preterm birth in high-risk patients, but may be effective in a subset of such patients. Placental pathology from a prior pregnancy may be used to predict which patients will experience rPTB, or to identify a subset more likely to respond to treatment with antenatal progesterone...