Relationship Between 1,5 Anhydroglucitol, Glycemia, and Breastfeeding During Pregnancy and Postpartum: A Pilot Study.

Background: Assessments for hyperglycemia are vital to pregnancy and postpartum (PP) care, but gold-standard oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) are burdensome. We examined changes in 1,5 anhydroglucitol (1,5AG) levels during gestation and PP and assessed for associations with other measures of glycemia.

Study Design: Pregnant participants (n = 50) in the Study of Pregnancy Regulation of Insulin and Glucose cohort underwent OGTTs at a mean of 13 weeks ([visit 1 (V1)] and 26 weeks [visit 2 (V2)] of gestation and PP.

Kinbank: A global database of kinship terminology.

For a single species, human kinship organization is both remarkably diverse and strikingly organized. Kinship terminology is the structured vocabulary used to classify, refer to, and address relatives and family. Diversity in kinship terminology has been analyzed by anthropologists for over 150 years, although recurrent patterning across cultures remains incompletely explained.

External Validation of a Prediction Model for External Cephalic Version Success.

External cephalic version (ECV) success correlates with numerous maternal and pregnancy factors. A prior study developed an ECV success prediction model based on body mass index, parity, placental location, and fetal presentation. We performed external validation of this model using a retrospective cohort of ECV procedures from a separate institution between July 2016 and December 2021.

Change in T2* measurements of placenta and fetal organs during Braxton Hicks contractions.

Maternal-placental perfusion can be temporarily compromised by Braxton Hicks (BH) uterine contractions. Although prior studies have employed T2* changes to investigate the effect of BH contractions on placental oxygen, the effect of these contractions on the fetus has not been fully characterized. We investigated the effect of BH contractions on quantitative fetal organ T2* across gestation together with the birth information.

High-Dose Inhaled Nitric Oxide for the Treatment of Spontaneously Breathing Pregnant Patients With Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pneumonia.

Objective: To evaluate whether the use of inhaled nitric oxide (iNO)200 improves respiratory function.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study used data from pregnant patients hospitalized with severe bilateral coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia at four teaching hospitals between March 2020 and December 2021. Two cohorts were identified: 1) those receiving standard of care alone (SoC cohort) and 2) those receiving iNO200 for 30 minutes twice daily in addition to standard of care alone (iNO200 cohort).

Continuous wave interdigital H-mode cavities for alternating phase focusing heavy ion acceleration.

In the future, a new superconducting (SC) continuous wave (CW) high intensity heavy ion HElmholtz LInear ACcelerator (HELIAC) should provide ion beams with maximum beam energy above the Coulomb barrier for the Super Heavy Element program at GSI (Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung, in Engl.: Association for Heavy Ion Research). The HELIAC consists of a SC main accelerator supplied by a normal conducting injector, which comprises an electron cyclotron resonance ion source, a radio-frequency quadrupole, and two separate interdigital H-mode drift-tube linear accelerator cavities, based on an Alternating Phase Focusing (APF) scheme.

Maternal Morbidity in the Second Stage of Labor: Analysis to Simulate the Clinical Choice.

Objective: The aim of the study is to analyze maternal morbidity in the second stage of labor in a manner that approximates clinical choice.

Study Design: The study design comprises secondary analysis of the Consortium for Safe Labor, which included 228,688 deliveries at 19 hospitals between 2002 and 2008. We included the 107,675 women who were undergoing a trial of labor without a prior uterine scar or history of substance abuse, who reached the second stage, with a liveborn, nonanomalous, vertex, singleton, at term of at least 2,500 g.

A dynamic collimation and alignment system for the Helmholtz linear accelerator.

The upcoming commissioning of the superconducting (SC) continuous wave Helmholtz linear accelerators first of series cryomodule is going to demand precise alignment of the four internal SC cavities and two SC solenoids. For optimal results, a beam-based alignment method is used to reduce the misalignment of the whole cryomodule, as well as its individual components. A symmetric beam of low transverse emittance is required for this method, which is to be formed by a collimation system.

Quantitative T and T mapping by magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) of the placenta before and after maternal hyperoxia.

Introduction: MR relaxometry has been used to assess placental exchange function, but methods to date are not sufficiently fast to be robust to placental motion. Magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) permits rapid, voxel-wise, intrinsically co-registered T and T mapping. After characterizing measurement error, we scanned pregnant women during air and oxygen breathing to demonstrate MRF's ability to detect placental oxygenation changes.

Association between peripartum hysterectomy and venous thromboembolism.

Background: The risk of venous thromboembolism after delivery is modified by mode of delivery, with the risk of venous thromboembolism being higher after cesarean delivery than vaginal delivery. The risk of venous thromboembolism after peripartum hysterectomy is largely unknown.

Objective: This study aimed to compare the incidence and risk of venous thromboembolism among women who had and did not have a peripartum hysterectomy.

Establishing Better Evidence on Remote Monitoring for Postpartum Hypertension: A Silver Lining of the Coronavirus Pandemic.

The transformation of our health care system in response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) provides a unique opportunity to examine the use of telehealth for postpartum care. The postpartum period can pose significant risks and challenges, particularly for women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. Remote blood pressure monitoring has proven feasible and acceptable among women and providers but has not been widely implemented or researched.

Placental MRI: Development of an MRI compatible ex vivo system for whole placenta dual perfusion.

Purpose: Placental dysfunction plays a key role in diseases that affect the fetus in utero and after birth. Aiming to develop a platform for validating in vivo placental MRI and investigations into placental physiology, we designed and built a prototype MRI-compatible perfusion chamber with an integrated MRI receive coil for high SNR ex vivo placental imaging.

Principal Results: After optimizing placenta vascular clearing and perfusion protocols, we performed contrast enhanced MR angiography and MR relaxometry on eight carefully selected placentas while they were perfused via the umbilical arteries (UAs).

High Concentrations of Nitric Oxide Inhalation Therapy in Pregnant Patients With Severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Background: Rescue therapies to treat or prevent progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) hypoxic respiratory failure in pregnant patients are lacking.

Method: To treat pregnant patients meeting criteria for severe or critical COVID-19 with high-dose (160-200 ppm) nitric oxide by mask twice daily and report on their clinical response.

Experience: Six pregnant patients were admitted with severe or critical COVID-19 at Massachusetts General Hospital from April to June 2020 and received inhalational nitric oxide therapy.

Placental MRI: Effect of maternal position and uterine contractions on placental BOLD MRI measurements.

Introduction: Before using blood-oxygen-level-dependent magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD MRI) during maternal hyperoxia as a method to detect individual placental dysfunction, it is necessary to understand spatiotemporal variations that represent normal placental function. We investigated the effect of maternal position and Braxton-Hicks contractions on estimates obtained from BOLD MRI of the placenta during maternal hyperoxia.

Methods: For 24 uncomplicated singleton pregnancies (gestational age 27-36 weeks), two separate BOLD MRI datasets were acquired, one in the supine and one in the left lateral maternal position.

Cardiac Surgery During Pregnancy.

The need for cardiac surgery during pregnancy is rare. Only 1% to 4% of pregnancies are complicated by maternal cardiac disease and most of these can be managed with medical therapy and lifestyle changes. On occasion, whether due to natural progression of the underlying cardiac disease or precipitated by the cardiovascular changes of pregnancy, cardiac surgical therapy must be considered.

Preliminary evaluation of dynamic glucose enhanced MRI of the human placenta during glucose tolerance test.

Background: To investigate dynamic glucose enhanced (DGE) chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) MRI as a means to non-invasively image glucose transport in the human placenta.

Methods: Continuous wave (CW) CEST MRI was performed at 3.0 Tesla.

Placental MRI: Developing Accurate Quantitative Measures of Oxygenation.

The Human Placenta Project has focused attention on the need for noninvasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based techniques to diagnose and monitor placental function throughout pregnancy. The hope is that the management of placenta-related pathologies would be improved if physicians had more direct, real-time measures of placental health to guide clinical decision making. As oxygen alters signal intensity on MRI and oxygen transport is a key function of the placenta, many of the MRI methods under development are focused on quantifying oxygen transport or oxygen content of the placenta.

Postoperative Opioid Consumption After Scheduled Compared With Unscheduled Cesarean Delivery.

Objective: To identify characteristics associated with high inpatient daily opioid consumption after cesarean delivery.

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of all cesarean deliveries performed under neuraxial anesthesia with neuraxial morphine, at a single institution from January 1, 2015, to December 31, 2015. Women with preoperative opioid use disorder or chronic opioid use were excluded.