Subgroups of pelvic pain are differentially associated with endometriosis and inflammatory comorbidities: a latent class analysis.

Chronic pelvic pain is heterogeneous with potentially clinically informative subgroups. We aimed to identify subgroups of pelvic pain based on symptom patterns and investigate their associations with inflammatory and chronic pain-related comorbidities. Latent class analysis (LCA) identified subgroups of participants (n = 1255) from the Adolescence to Adulthood (A2A) cohort.

Associations Between Maternal Depression, Antidepressant Use During Pregnancy, and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes: An Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis.

Objective: To evaluate the associations of depressive symptoms and antidepressant use during pregnancy with the risks of preterm birth, low birth weight, small for gestational age (SGA), and low Apgar scores.

Data Sources: MEDLINE, EMBASE, ClinicalTrials.gov, and PsycINFO up to June 2016.

Maternal Serum Antioxidants in Mid Pregnancy and Risk of Preterm Delivery and Small for Gestational Age Birth: Results from a Prospective Pregnancy Cohort.

Preterm delivery (PTD) and poor fetal growth are major contributors to neonatal mortality and morbidity that can extend from birth onward. Although overt maternal nutrient deficiencies are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, such deficiencies are rare in developed countries. However, some evidence suggests that even within the normal range, higher levels of antioxidant nutrients are protective against adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Working Towards a Reproducible Method for Quantifying Placental Syncytial Knots.

Prominent syncytial knots (SK) in placentas signal advanced gestation or placental malperfusion, reflecting exposures that adversely affect placental development and pregnancy outcomes. Molecular-level interrogations of syncytiotrophoblast have altered perceptions of and raised questions about the function and disposition of SK. Quantifying SK and achieving acceptable levels of interrater reliability have been challenging.

Maternal mid-pregnancy lipids and birthweight.

Objective: To describe associations between maternal lipids and birthweight and to determine whether pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) modifies these associations.

Design: Cohort study.

Setting: Multiple communities in Michigan, USA.

Inflammation biomarkers in vaginal fluid and preterm delivery.

Study Question: Which inflammation biomarkers detected in the vaginal fluid are most informative for identifying preterm delivery (PTD) risk?

Summary Answer: Elevated interleukin (IL)-6 at mid-trimester was associated with increased odds of spontaneous PTD at <35 weeks and with PTD plus histologic chorioamnionitis (HCA), and had the greatest sensitivity for detecting these two PTD subtypes.

What Is Known Already: Maternal and/or fetal inflammation play a role in some preterm deliveries, therefore inflammation biomarkers might help to identify women at greater risk.

Study Design, Size, Duration: We examined 1115 women from the Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health Study, a cohort study conducted from September 1998 through June 2004, for whom data were available on mid-pregnancy inflammatory biomarkers.

C-reactive protein and preterm delivery: clues from placental findings and maternal weight.

To study the association between maternal C-reactive protein (CRP) and preterm delivery (PTD) pathways, CRP was measured in maternal plasma collected at mid-pregnancy (n = 1310). PTD was subdivided into spontaneous (sPTD) or medically indicated (MI-PTD). Histologic chorioamnionitis (HCA) was determined by placental histopathology (n = 1076).

Maternal lipids at mid-pregnancy and the risk of preterm delivery.

Objective: This study examined associations between maternal lipid levels at mid-pregnancy and preterm delivery, medically indicated or spontaneous.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Women were recruited from 52 clinics in five Michigan, USA communities (1998-2004).

Leisure-time physical activity in pregnancy and the birth weight distribution: where is the effect?

Background: Leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) is recommended during pregnancy and has been associated with lower risk of delivering a large infant. We sought to characterize the effect of LTPA across the entire birth weight distribution.

Methods: Women enrolled in the Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health (POUCH) Study (1998-2004) were followed-up in 2007.

Life stressors and 5-HTTLPR interaction in relation to midpregnancy depressive symptoms among African-American women.

Objective: In earlier analyses of nonHispanic White women we found a stronger relation between abuse history and midpregnancy elevated depressive symptoms in women with the serotonin transporter (5-HTTLPR) S/S genotype. Here, we focus on African-American women (N=698). Our inquiry is motivated by racial differences in depression diagnosis/treatment, stressors, and frequency of major 5-HTTLPR alleles (S, LA, LG).

Mid-pregnancy levels of angiogenic markers as indicators of pathways to preterm delivery.

Objective: To determine whether mid-pregnancy levels of angiogenic markers were associated with increased risk of preterm delivery (PTD).

Methods: We studied a subcohort from the Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health Study for whom mid-pregnancy angiogenic markers (soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 [sFlt-1], soluble endoglin [sEng] and placental growth factor [PlGF]) and covariate data were available (N = 1301). Angiogenic marker levels were grouped as high/not high (sFlt-1 and sEng), low/not low (PlGF) and high/intermediate/low (sFlt-1).

Midpregnancy levels of angiogenic markers in relation to maternal characteristics.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe relations among maternal demographic and lifestyle characteristics and midpregnancy levels of angiogenic markers (soluble Fms-like tyrosine kinase-1, placental growth factor, soluble endoglin).

Study Design: In a large pregnancy cohort, linear models were used to evaluate relations among maternal characteristics and midpregnancy angiogenic markers with and without covariate adjustment. Associations were examined in a subcohort that included term and preterm deliveries (n = 1302) and among "normal" term pregnancies (n = 668).

Blood cadmium levels in women of childbearing age vary by race/ethnicity.

The heavy metal cadmium (Cd) is long-lived in the body and low-level cumulative exposure, even among non-smokers, has been associated with changes in renal function and bone metabolism. Women are more susceptible to the adverse effects of Cd and have higher body burdens. Due to increased dietary absorption of Cd in menstruating women and the long half-life of the metal, reproductive age exposures are likely important contributors to overall body burden and disease risk.

Polymorphisms in thrombophilia and renin-angiotensin system pathways, preterm delivery, and evidence of placental hemorrhage.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze functional polymorphisms in candidate genes (methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase [MTHFR]677C>T, MTHFR1298A>C, factor 5 1691G>A [FVL], and angiotensinogen (AGT)-6G>A) in relation to a hypothesized placental hemorrhage pathway to preterm delivery (PTD).

Study Design: We assessed maternal genotypes, pregnancy outcomes, and placental pathologic evidence among 560 white and 399 black women who were recruited at mid trimester into a prospective cohort study (1998-2004). Odds of dominant genotypes were calculated for PTDs with (n = 56) or without (n = 177) evidence of placental hemorrhage (referent = term) with the use of race-stratified polytomous logistic regression models.

Midpregnancy vaginal fluid defensins, bacterial vaginosis, and risk of preterm delivery.

Objective: To assess relations among midpregnancy vaginal defensin levels, a component of the host innate immune response, bacterial vaginosis, and risk of preterm delivery. These relations are compared across race groups because previous studies have repeatedly shown that the prevalence of bacterial vaginosis and the risk of preterm delivery are greater in African-American women compared with that in white women.

Methods: Data are from a prospective study that enrolled pregnant women from 52 clinics in five Michigan communities.

Hostility and anomie: links to preterm delivery subtypes and ambulatory blood pressure at mid-pregnancy.

Underlying maternal vascular disease has been implicated as one of several pathways contributing to preterm delivery (PTD) and psychosocial factors such as hostility, anomie, effortful coping, and mastery may be associated with PTD by affecting maternal vascular health. Using data from the Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health (POUCH) study, we included 2018 non-Hispanic White and 743 African American women from 52 clinics in five Michigan, USA communities. Women were interviewed at 15-27 weeks' gestation and followed to delivery.

Assessing mid-trimester salivary cortisol levels across three consecutive days in pregnant women using an at-home collection protocol.

The Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health (POUCH) Study enrolled women in their 15th to 27th week of pregnancy from 52 prenatal clinics located in five communities. After the study began, an at-home protocol to measure maternal stress was added, which included collection of urine and saliva twice a day (waking = AM, bedtime = PM) for three consecutive days, and completion of a daily diary. The at-home protocol was in place for 2852 POUCH participants at enrollment, and 81.