Physical Activity During the COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Order in Active Older Adults: A Qualitative Study.

To reduce the spread of COVID-19, in March of 2020, the state of Virginia issued a stay-at-home order requiring fitness center closures for 2.4 months. The purpose of this study was to explore how the fitness center closures influenced physical activity (PA) in older adults who previously participated in the centers' exercise classes.

A non-invasive test for prenatal diagnosis based on fetal DNA present in maternal blood: a preliminary study.

Background: Use of free fetal DNA to diagnose fetal chromosomal abnormalities has been hindered by the inability to distinguish fetal DNA from maternal DNA. Our aim was to establish whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can be used to distinguish fetal DNA from maternal DNA-and to determine the number of fetal chromosomes-in maternal blood samples.

Methods: Formaldehyde-treated blood samples from 60 pregnant women and the stated biological fathers were analysed.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine Survey: membership's opinion counts.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) membership survey, although subject to response bias, provided clear opinions on controversial issues. A past president and the current president of ASRM comment on the value of the input to the ASRM board.

Methods to increase the percentage of free fetal DNA recovered from the maternal circulation.

Context: Noninvasive prenatal diagnostic tests using free fetal DNA provide an alternative to invasive tests and their attendant risks; however, free fetal DNA exists in the maternal circulation at low percentages, which has hindered development of noninvasive tests.

Objective: To test the hypothesis that using formaldehyde to reduce cell lysis could increase the relative percentage of free fetal DNA in samples of maternal blood.

Design, Setting, And Patients: The first phase of the study was conducted from January through February 2002 at a single US clinical site; 2 samples of blood were collected from each of 10 pregnant women, and the percentage of free fetal DNA in formaldehyde-treated and untreated samples was determined.

Hormonal strategies of the menopause.

A woman at the age of 50 in the United States has a life expectancy of approximately 30 years. The menopausal years, the symptoms associated with menopause, and concurrent conditions associated with these age groups are of major importance, since women may live up to one third of their lives in menopause. In this discussion, the physiologic conditions associated with menopause, including osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and breast cancer, are considered, with specific assessment of risks and benefits of hormone replacement therapy.

Effect of incremental time experience on the results of in vitro fertilization with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).

Purpose: Our objective was to determine the effect of experience on the results with intracytoplasmic sperm injection.

Methods: The quarterly outcome with both ICSI and traditional in vitro fertilization (IVF) in 1994 was analyzed in 475 patients under age 40 undergoing 595 oocyte retrievals. The data represent 307 patients undergoing 379 retrievals for IVF and 165 patients undergoing 216 retrievals for ICSI.

Deleterious effect of the presence of hydrosalpinx on implantation and pregnancy rates with in vitro fertilization.

Objective: To determine the effect of the presence of a unilateral or bilateral hydrosalpinx on the outcome with IVF-ET.

Design: Retrospective analysis of clinical and laboratory data.

Setting: Hospital-based private IVF center.

Hydrosalpinx affects the implantation of previously cryopreserved embryos.

The presence of hydrosalpinx has been reported to negatively affect the pregnancy and implantation rate after in-vitro fertilization (IVF) with embryo transfer. Hydrosalpinges are able to enlarge during ovarian stimulation with a possible increased passage of tubal fluid into the endometrial cavity. We report the effect of hydrosalpinges during the transfer of previously cryopreserved/thawed embryos during a natural cycle.

Perforated appendicitis and ectopic pregnancy following in-vitro fertilization.

This report describes a case of perforated appendicitis and ectopic pregnancy following in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer. Perforated appendicitis was a coincidental event following IVF and embryo transfer. Immediate diagnosis and treatment of the perforated appendicitis saved the life of the patient.

Pathophysiology and management of endometriosis.

Endometriosis is a common disease that affects up to 5 million women in the United States. Specifically the prevalence of endometriosis is 1 in 15 (7%) women of reproductive age, and there is an associated incidence of infertility in as many as 30% to 40% of cases. The precise physiologic mechanism for the development of endometriosis lesions in the pelvis and abdominal cavity has not been elucidated.

The effect of epidermal growth factor in human granulosa cells varies with follicle size.

EGF decreases aromatase activity and stimulates the proliferation of granulosa cells. To determine if EGF affects follicles of different maturity differently, human granulosa cells obtained from 6 patients at the time of IVF were pooled according to size and cultured in serum free medium with or without EGF. Estrogen production at 72 h was determined by measuring tritiated water formed in a 1-h culture with 1 beta [3H] androstenedione.

Maternal characteristics of women delivered of twins: natural vs. induced.

This study retrospectively compared sociodemographic and anthropometric data, as well as selected obstetric outcomes, of 13 mothers of twins who conceived after ovulation induction with clomiphene citrate or Pergonal with similar data from 255 mothers who conceived naturally. Infertile women were significantly (P < .011) older and likely to be married, of the white race, and more educated than women who conceived naturally.

A comparison of the reproductive outcome between women with a unicornuate uterus and women with a didelphic uterus.

Objective: To compare the reproductive performance of women with a unicornuate uterus with the reproductive performance of women with a didelphic uterus.

Design: Retrospective.

Setting: Reproductive endocrinology service of a tertiary referral hospital.

Effects of human serum on rat cumulus-oocyte complex functions in vitro: oocyte activation and endocrine secretions.

Secretion of hormones and oocyte meiotic events were assessed following in vitro culture of ovulated rat cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) in media containing different types of human serum. Both toxic and nontoxic (determined by mouse embryo test) samples of fetal cord or adult female serum were utilized for these experiments. After short-term culture (4.

Superovulation with or without intrauterine insemination for the treatment of infertility.

Patients undergoing human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) superovulation were reviewed retrospectively to determine whether fecundity was greater for intrauterine insemination (IUI) than timed intercourse. Forty patients with unexplained infertility, American Fertility Society I or II endometriosis, luteal phase defect and/or cervical factor were treated with hMG alone or hMG plus IUI. Twenty-eight underwent 52 cycles of hMG/IUI, and 19 underwent 31 cycles of hMG.

Time-related effects of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog treatment in experimentally induced endometriosis in the rat.

The purpose of our study was to characterize the time-dependent effect of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog (GnRH-a) therapy on endometriosis explant using the rat model. Endometriosis was induced in 60 mature female rats. One group of treated animals as well as controls were killed at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks of treatment at which time the explant was evaluated.

Laparoscopic cautery in the treatment of endometriosis-related infertility.

Life table analysis and the two-parameter exponential method have been applied to pregnancy rates in 72 patients undergoing laparoscopic cautery exclusively. Patients with male factor infertility were excluded. Estimated cure rates for patients with stage I and II disease were 98.

Neosalpingostomy for distal tubal obstruction: prognostic factors and impact of surgical technique.

We reviewed the clinical records of all women who underwent microsurgical terminal neosalpingostomy for distal tubal obstruction between January 1983 and June 1988. We identified 95 women whose preoperative evaluation revealed no other contributory factors for infertility and analyzed their pregnancy outcome after this procedure. Pregnancy success was inversely related to the extent of tubal distortion (dilation, rugal integrity, and status of the fimbria) and degree of adnexal adhesions.

The incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in fetal cord samples utilized as serum supplements for in vitro fertilization.

Prior to initiating routine fetal cord serum (FCS) supplementation in our in vitro laboratory, the incidence of HIV in 306 random fetal cord samples obtained at the Labor and Delivery Unit of the Johns Hopkins Hospital from July 1985 to January 1988 was determined from a cross-sectional patient sample. Of 306 samples, 3 (0.98%) were positive for HIV, and confirmed by Western blot analysis, enzyme immunoassay (ELISA), a prevalence significantly higher than a national sample (0.