The sonographic appearance and obstetric management of placenta accreta.

Placenta accreta is a condition of abnormal placental implantation in which the placental tissue invades beyond the decidua basalis. It may invade into or even through the myometrium and adjacent organs, such as the urinary bladder. The incidence has been rising in recent years.

Maternal height and length of gestation: does this impact on preterm labour in Asian women?

Background: Both maternal height and ethnicity may influence the gestation length, but their independent effect is unclear.

Aim: This study was performed to examine the relationship between maternal height and gestational length in women with singleton pregnancies in a Chinese and southeast Asian population.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed on women carrying singleton pregnancies with spontaneous labour in a 48-month period managed under our department to determine the relationship between maternal height, expressed in quartiles, with the mean gestational age and incidence of preterm labour.

Prelabor rupture of membranes at term requiring labor induction - a feature of occult fetal cephalopelvic disproportion?

Aim: To examine the maternal and neonatal characteristics related to labor outcome following induction for prelabor rupture of membranes (PROM) after 37 weeks' gestation.

Method: All singleton pregnancies delivered following spontaneous or induced labor after 37 weeks in four years were analyzed. Patients with labor induction for PROM comprised the study group.

Effect of parity and advanced maternal age on obstetric outcome.

Objectives: To examine the effect of parity on obstetric outcome in women aged 40 years or older.

Methods: A retrospective cohort of 16,427 singleton pregnancies delivered between 1998 and 2001 was studied. Obstetric outcomes in women aged 40 years or older versus women younger than 40 years were compared for both nulliparous and multiparous women.

Gestational diabetes mellitus in women in the fourth decade--is treatment worthwhile?

Aim: To examine the influence of diet-treated gestational diabetes mellitus on the obstetric performance of mothers aged 40 and above.

Method: We reviewed the delivery records of 205 mothers aged 40 and above who delivered over a 3-year period. A 75-gram oral glucose tolerance test was performed in all cases and 64 (31.

Universal SARS preventive measures in an obstetrics unit: experience of health care staff.

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemics have affected populations in many countries, including Hong Kong. This disease is infectious, especially in hospital settings. Health care workers have expressed great concern, including those working in obstetrics wards, defined as high-risk areas.

First-trimester diagnosis of hydrolethalus syndrome in a Chinese family.

We report a case resembling hydrolethalus syndrome in a Chinese family. Fetal polydactyly, syndactyly, encephalocele and cardiac malformation were detected on ultrasound examination at 12 weeks' gestation. Termination of pregnancy was performed, and postmortem examination confirmed the findings.