Labor preterm

OBJECTIVE: If a small for gestational age (SGA) foetus needs to be delivered because of severity (< 3rd centile) attempting induction of labor theoretically increases the risk of caesarean section and neonatal acidosis, but these risks are poorly understood. This article aims to assess the risk of caesarean section and neonatal acidosis in attempted vaginal birth of a moderately preterm foetus in the setting of severe SGA. METHOD: A single-centre hospital-based observational study conducted over a period of 17 consecutive years in mothers with a single foetus in cephalic presentation with severe SGA (< 3rd centile) needing foetal extraction...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To investigate the impact of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection on pregnancy outcomes. METHODS: We selected 512 pregnant women, collected the data including maternal demographics, main adverse pregnancy outcomes and maternal HBV infected markers HBeAg and HBV-DNA loads status, then have a comparative analysis. RESULTS: There were 319 solitary ICP patients without HBV infection (Group I) and 193 ICP patients with HBV infection...

BACKGROUND: Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy contributes to morbidity and mortality among neonates ≥ 360 weeks' gestation. Evidence of preventative antenatal treatment is limited. Magnesium sulfate has neuroprotective properties among preterm fetuses. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are a risk factor for hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and magnesium sulfate is recommended for maternal seizure prophylaxis among patients with pre-eclampsia with severe features. OBJECTIVES: 1) Determine trends in incidence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, antenatal magnesium sulfate and hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, 2) evaluate the association between hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and 3) evaluate if, among patients with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, the odds of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy is mitigated by receipt of antenatal magnesium sulfate...

INTRODUCTION: Neonatal deaths and stillbirths are significant public health concerns in Pakistan, with an estimated stillbirth rate of 43 per 1,000 births and a neonatal mortality rate of 46 deaths per 1,000 live births. Limited access to obstetric care, poor health seeking behaviors and lack of quality healthcare are the leading root causes for stillbirths and neonatal deaths. Rehri Goth, a coastal slum in Karachi, faces even greater challenges due to extreme poverty, and inadequate infrastructure...

BACKGROUND: Because selective termination (ST) for discordant dichorionic twin anomalies carries a risk of pregnancy loss, deferring the procedure until the third trimester can be considered in settings where it is legal. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether perinatal outcomes were more favorable following deferred rather than immediate ST. STUDY DESIGN: A French multicenter retrospective study from 2012 to 2023 on dichorionic twin pregnancies with ST for fetal conditions which were diagnosed before 24 WG...

AIMS: Preterm birth, recognized as delivery before 37 weeks of gestation, is a multifactorial syndrome characterizing as the main cause of neonatal mortality. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been identified as proinflammatory factors to cause placental inflammation, thereby resulting in several pregnancy outcomes. To date, limited knowledge regarding the underlying mechanisms of ROS-induced preterm birth has been reported. Here, we aimed to investigate the role of oxidative stress in preterm birth and the protective effects of mitochondria-targeted antioxidant MitoTEMPO (MT) on preterm labor and offspring mice...

BACKGROUND: Preterm birth is a leading cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality and a defining event for pregnant people, infants, and whānau (extended families). Recommendations have been made for a national preterm birth prevention initiative focusing on equity in Aotearoa New Zealand, including the development of a national best practice guide. An understanding of the number and quality of guidelines, and consideration of their suitability and impact on equity is required. METHODS: Guidelines were identified through a systematic literature search, search of professional bodies websites, and invitation to regional health services in Aotearoa New Zealand...

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies have reported associations between SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and adverse perinatal outcomes but the extent to which these associations vary by race/ethnicity remains uncertain. Therefore, we examined how the association between prenatal SARS-CoV-2 infection and adverse perinatal outcomes may be modified by race/ethnicity. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cohort study was performed using data on 67,986 pregnant women extracted from the Kaiser Permanente Southern California electronic health records between 04/06/2020-12/31/2021...

OBJECTIVE: Inflammation has been reported to increase zonulin levels, a protein that regulates intestinal permeability. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of serum zonulin levels with preterm labor in pregnant women. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 180 pregnant women between 32-42 weeks of gestation were included in the study. Among those whose gestational week is less than 37, preterm labor (group 1), normal course pregnant (group 2), and gestational weeks between 37-42 pregnant women with normal course (group 3), term labor (group 4) groups were formed...

We aimed to determine the composite maternal hemorrhagic outcome (CMHO) among individuals with and without HDP, stratified by disease severity. Additionally, we investigated the composite neonatal adverse outcome (CNAO) among individuals with HDP who had versus did not have PPH. Our retrospective cohort study included all singletons who delivered at a Level IV center over two consecutive years. The primary outcome was the rate of CMHO, defined as blood loss ≥ 1000 mL, use of uterotonics, mechanical tamponade, surgical techniques for atony, transfusion, venous thromboembolism, ICU admission, hysterectomy, or maternal death...

BACKGROUND: Premature birth rates have slightly increased globally, making its prevention critical for both short-term and long-term health outcomes. Various interventions have been developed in response to the multifaceted risk factors for premature birth, including internet-based programs. These programs offer accessibility and enhanced engagement; however, their overall efficacy in preventing premature births requires thorough evaluation. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aims to identify the study designs and assess the effectiveness of internet-based interventions in preventing premature birth among pregnant women...

Implantation and maintenance of pregnancy involve intricate immunological processes that enable the developing fetus to coexist with the maternal immune system. Progesterone, a critical hormone during pregnancy, is known to promote immune tolerance and prevent preterm labor. However, the mechanism by which progesterone mediates these effects remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of the non-classical progesterone receptor membrane component 1 (PGRMC1) in progesterone signaling at the maternal-fetal interface...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to analyze the prevalence, trends, and outcomes of twin pregnancies in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, over two distinct periods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This research, based on a 14-year retrospective cohort study, scrutinized twin births occurring in two-time frames: recent years (2012-2018; Period II) and the recent past (2005-2011; Period I) at a University Teaching Hospital in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. The inclusion criteria were limited to twin births, excluding singleton and higher-order gestations...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: No previous study has been conducted in Nigeria on the role of neutrophil elastase in predicting preterm birth. The present study aimed to determine the role of the neutrophil elastase test in predicting birth in women with preterm labor. METHODS: The present prospective cohort study recruited 83 pregnant women with preterm labor between 28 and 36+6 weeks of gestation, and followed up these subjects for 14 days. The controls comprised 85 pregnant women without preterm labor...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a multisystem disorder that presents with a variety of phenotypes involving metabolic, endocrine, reproductive, and psychological symptoms and signs. Women with PCOS are at increased risk of pregnancy complications including implantation failure, miscarriage, gestational diabetes, fetal growth restriction, preterm labor, and pre-eclampsia (PE). This may be attributed to the presence of specific susceptibility features associated with PCOS before and during pregnancy, such as chronic systemic inflammation, insulin resistance (IR), and hyperandrogenism, all of which have been associated with an increased risk of pregnancy complications...

BACKGROUND: Trial of labor after cesarean after 2 cesarean deliveries is linked to a lower success rate of vaginal delivery and higher rates of adverse obstetrical outcomes than trial of labor after cesarean after 1 previous cesarean delivery. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with failed trial of labor after cesarean among women with 2 previous cesarean deliveries. STUDY DESIGN: This was a multicenter retrospective cohort study, which included all women with singleton pregnancies attempting trial of labor after cesarean after 2 previous cesarean deliveries between 2003 and 2021...

BACKGROUND: We investigated the potential association between Marfan Syndrome (MFS) and adverse obstetric outcomes using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database. METHODS: We utilized the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) system to identify relevant codes and extracted data from the NIS database covering the period 2016-2019. Descriptive statistics and χ2 tests were employed to summarize and compare baseline characteristics. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses (adjusted for age, race, hospital region, smoking status, and alcohol misuse) were conducted to evaluate association between MFS and adverse obstetric outcomes...

L-368,899 is a selective small-molecule oxytocin receptor (OXTR) antagonist originally developed in the 1990s to prevent preterm labor. Although its utility for that purpose was limited, L-368,899 is now one of the most commonly used drugs in animal research for the selective blockade of neural OXTR after peripheral delivery. A growing number of rodent and primate studies have used L-368,899 to evaluate whether certain behaviors are oxytocin dependent. These studies have improved our understanding of oxytocin's function in the brains of rodents and monkeys, but very little work has been done in other mammals, and only a single paper in macaques has provided any evidence that L-368,899 can be detected in the CNS after peripheral delivery...

OBJECTIVE: Non-Hispanic Black people (NHBP) have a 3-fold higher rate of maternal mortality compared to other racial groups. Racial disparities in maternal morbidity are well described however there are substantial differences in cultural, economic, and social determinants of health among racial groups. We sought to study the, at-risk, non-Hispanic Black population as its own cohort to identify factors most associated with severe maternal morbidity (SMM). METHODS: This is a population-based retrospective case control study of all livebirths in the U...

BACKGROUND: Being exposed to crises during pregnancy can affect maternal health through stress exposure, which can in return impact neonatal health. We investigated temporal trends in neonatal outcomes in Switzerland between 2007 and 2022 and their variations depending on exposure to the economic crisis of 2008, the flu pandemic of 2009, heatwaves (2015 and 2018) and the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Using individual cross-sectional data encompassing all births occurring in Switzerland at the monthly level (2007-2022), we analysed changes in birth weight and in the rates of preterm birth (PTB) and stillbirth through time with generalized additive models...