Pregnancy

Studies were conducted to determine whether maternal substrate utilization during pregnancy affects fetal growth and predisposes offspring to metabolic disease. Female wild-type (WT) and glucose transporter 4 heterozygous mice (G4+/-, a model of altered peripheral substrate utilization) were fed high-fat diet (HFD, 35.5% fat) or control chow (C, 9.5% fat) for 2 wk before mating, throughout pregnancy and lactation (IU/L). WT HFD females exhibited increased serum nonesterified fatty acid and lactate levels and increased hepatic mRNA expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1-beta and SREBP-1c, consistent with increased lipogenesis. G4+/- HFD females exhibited enhanced lipid clearance, and exposure to HFD did not increase hepatic gene expression. HFD independent of maternal genotype decreased fetal growth and birth weight. WT offspring were weaned onto a low-fat diet (5.6% fat). Male offspring of WT mothers exposed to HFD exhibited "catch-up"...

The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate whether specific maternal HLA alleles and HLA sharing of couples are associated with the occurrence of recurrent miscarriage (RM). A systematic literature search was performed for studies that evaluated the association between HLA alleles, HLA sharing and RM. RM was defined as three or more consecutive unexplained miscarriages and a control group was included of women with at least one live birth and no miscarriages in their history. Meta-analyses were performed and the pooled odds ratio (OR) was calculated. We included 41 studies. Selection bias was present in 40 studies and information bias in all studies. Meta-analyses showed an increased risk of RM in mothers carrying a HLA-DRB1*4 (OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.05-1.90), HLA-DRB1*15 (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.15-2.14), or a HLA-E*01:01 allele (OR 1.47, 95% CI 0.20-1.81), and a decreased risk with HLA-DRB1*13 (OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.45-0.89) or HLA-DRB1*14 (OR 0.54, 95% CI 0.31-0.94). Pooling results for HLA ...

During the last five years the use of acupuncture in female infertility as an adjuvant to conventional treatment in assisted reproductive technology (ART) has increased in popularity.The present paper briefly discusses clinical and experimental data on the effect of acupuncture on uterine and ovarian blood flow, as an analgesic method during ART, and on endocrine and metabolic disturbances such as

Compares conceptualizations of homelessness as a temporary state through which people pass or a permanent trait that emanates from individual characteristics. Evidence from a longitudinal study of 564 homeless families in New York City and additional secondary sources supports the view that for families, homelessness is a temporary state that is resolved by the provision of subsidized housing. Even for single individuals with severe mental disturbances, housing is a key factor in ending homelessness, although here there is more evidence that social services also contribute. Policy implications are that governments should take a more active role in reducing homelessness by providing access to subsidized housing.

Die im Fokus dieser Studie stehende Bindungsanalyse (oder: vorgeburtliche Beziehungsför-derung) wurde in den 1990ern von den ungarischen Psychoanalytikern György Hidas (*1925-2012) und Jenö Raffai (*1954-2015) entwickelt. Es handelt es sich um eine Form der Schwangerschaftsbegleitung, die die werdende Mutter dazu einlädt, mit dem ungeborenen Kind über Körperempfindungen, Gedanken und innere Bilder in einen intensiven Kontakt zu treten.

Im Mittelpunkt dieser soziologischen Studie steht die Frage, wie Frauen, die eine Bindungsanalyse durchlaufen, diese Zeit erleben, für sich interpretieren und bewerten. Anders als standardisierte, evaluierende Fragebögen mit quantitativen Erhebungen, zum Beispiel zu Geburtsgewicht und Geburtskomplikationen, konzentriert sich die vorliegende Studie damit auf die subjektive Sichtweise der Klientinnen. Entsprechend wurde ein qualitativ orientiertes Studiendesign angewendet.

Insgesamt neun Frauen aus verschiedenen österreichischen Bundeländern haben an unserer Studie teilgenommen. Es wurden sowohl Schwangere als auch junge Mütter befragt. Die Er-hebung fand mittels eines teil-strukturierten Interviews mit Leitfaden statt, die ebenso Raum für Themen ließ, die den interviewten Personen selbst ein Anliegen waren. Die Auswertung und Analyse der Interviews wurde als themenbasierte Inhaltsanalyse durchgeführt.

Die Interviews mit den Klientinnen wurden von September 2014 bis März 2015 durchgeführt. Außerdem fanden vorab (ab 2013) Hintergrundgespräche mit drei Beraterinnen statt, welche auf langjährige Erfahrungen mit der Bindungsanalyse zurückblicken können. Ihre Interviews wurden zwar keiner umfassenden Analyse unterzogen, aber im vorliegenden Bericht ebenfalls an verschiedenen Stellen zitiert.

Es wird darauf hingewiesen, dass es sich bei dieser Studie um eine reine Dokumentation subjektiver Empfindungen und um keine Evaluierung der Methode der Bindungsanalyse handelt und auch kein diagnostischer Prozess stattfindet. Wissenschaftlich abgesicherte Aussagen über kausale Zusammenhänge zwischen der Methode als solche und Faktoren wie der Mutter-Kind-Beziehung nach der Geburt können aus den Ergebnissen nicht abgeleitet werden.

In this article, I examine the clinical practices engaged in by U.S. homebirth midwives and their clients from the beginning of pregnancy through to the immediate postpartum period, deconstructing them for their symbolic and ritual content. Using data collected from open-ended, semistructured interviews and intensive participant-observation, I describe the roles ritual plays in the construction, performance, and maintenance of birth at home as a transgressive rite of passage. As midwives ritually elaborate approaches to care to capitalize on their semiotic power to transmit a set of counterhegemonic values to participants, they are attempting, quite self-consciously, to peel away the fictions of medicalized birthing care. Their goal: to expose strong and capable women who "grow" and birth babies outside the regulatory and self-regulatory processes naturalized by modern, technocratic obstetrics. Homebirth practices are, thus, not simply evidence-based care strategies. They ...

To compare the clinical outcomes of cryopreservation according to the indications for freezing and the outcomes of the fresh cycle from which the embryos were derived. Retrospective study. Private assisted-reproduction unit. Three thousand, three hundred and sixty-eight embryos in 702 frozen-thawed embryo transfer (ET) cycles. Clinical outcomes of frozen-thawed ET cycles in which embryos were derived from fresh conception cycles (n = 436), from fresh nonconception cycles (n = 180), or where the fresh cycle was cancelled due to impending ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) (n = 86). Cryosurvival, clinical pregnancy, and implantation rates. Despite similar cryosurvival rates and the transfer of a similar number of embryos, significantly higher clinical pregnancy and implantation rates were obtained in the fresh-conception and OHSS groups. The implantation potential of frozen-thawed embryos that were not selected in a prior fresh cycle was comparable to that of embryos selected for fresh transfer. The success of frozen-thawed ET depends on the outcome of fresh ET and the indications for cryopreservation. Success is similar to that of fresh ET cycles in patients who had all their embryos frozen due to impending OHSS.

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) occurs in 1 to 8 per 1000 live births in developed countries. Historically, the clinician has had little to offer neonates with HIE other than systemic supportive care. Recently, the neuroprotective therapy of hypothermia has emerged as the standard of care, and other complementary therapies are rapidly transitioning from the basic science to clinical care. To examine the pathophysiology of HIE and the state of the art for the clinical care of neonates with HIE. We performed a literature review using the PubMed database. Results focused on reviews and articles published from January 1, 2004, through December 31, 2014. Articles published earlier than 2004 were included when appropriate for historical perspective. Our review emphasized evidence-based management practices for the clinician. A total of 102 articles for critical review were selected based on their relevance to the incidence of HIE, pathophysiology, neuroimaging, placental pathology, ...

Sixty patients were randomized to low-dose and high-dose groups, receiving a maximum total dose 1400 g of misoprostol by the vaginal route to compare the efficacy of the protocols for second trimester termination of pregnancy. Outcome measures to be compared between the groups were success rates, time to termination, blood loss, complications and side-effects. Yet time to termination was significantly shorter in the high-dose than in the low-dose group (923 +/- 571 vs 1307 +/- 828 min; p < 0.05). The distance between the internal cervical os and the placenta was positively correlated with the duration of the termination process (r = 0.508, p < 0.001). Induction to the fetal expulsion period is shorter with the higher dose without any significant increase in morbidity. A shorter distance between the internal cervical os and the placenta may forecast a shorter termination process.

Physical activities for a few days can increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA in rat hippocampus. To investigate the influence of maternal exercise during pregnancy on rat pup hippocampal BDNF mRNA, we studied its expression by a semi-quantitative RT-PCR method after young pregnant rats were exercised on a motor driven treadmill. Pups of exercised mothers had significantly increased hippocampal BDNF

The globally escalating thyroid nodule incidence rates may be only partially ascribed to better diagnostics, allowing for the assessment of environmental risk factors on thyroid disease. Endocrine disruptors or thyroid-disrupting chemicals (TDC) like bisphenol A, phthalates, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers are widely used as plastic additives in consumer products. This comprehensive review studied the magnitude and uncertainty of TDC exposures and their effects on thyroid hormones for sensitive subpopulation groups like pregnant women, infants, and children. Our findings qualitatively suggest the mixed, significant (α = 0.05) TDC associations with natural thyroid hormones (positive or negative sign). Future studies should undertake systematic meta-analyses to elucidate pooled TDC effect estimates on thyroid health indicators and outcomes.