Association of clinical signs of chorioamnionitis with histological chorioamnionitis and neonatal outcomes.

Background: Chorioamnionitis is a risk factor for fetal and neonatal outcomes. Therefore, predicting histological chorioamnionitis (HCA) and neonatal outcomes using clinical parameters could be helpful in management and preventing morbidities.

Objective: To determine if parameters of clinical chorioamnionitis (CCA) would be associated with HCA and neonatal outcomes.

Eliminating Contamination in Umbilical Cord Blood Culture Sampling for Early-Onset Neonatal Sepsis.

Despite the advantages of umbilical cord blood culture (UCBC) use for diagnosis of early onset sepsis (EOS), contamination rates have deterred neonatologists from its widespread use. We aimed to implement UCBC collection in a level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and apply quality improvement (QI) methods to reduce contamination in the diagnosis of early onset sepsis. Single-center implementation study utilizing quality improvement methodology to achieve 0% contamination rate in UCBC samples using the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) model for improvement.

Dietary Exposure to Excess Saturated Fat During Early Life Alters Hippocampal Gene Expression and Increases Risk for Behavioral Disorders in Adulthood.

Purpose: Maternal and postnatal diets result in long-term changes in offspring brain and behavior; however, the key mediators of these developmental changes are not well-defined. In this study, we investigated the impact of maternal and post-weaning high-fat diets on gene expression of key components mediating hippocampal synaptic efficacy. In addition, we evaluated the risk for impaired stress-coping and anxiety-like behaviors in adult offspring exposed to obesogenic diets during early life.

On the Use of Knitted Antennas and Inductively Coupled RFID Tags for Wearable Applications.

Recent advancements in conductive yarns and fabrication technologies offer exciting opportunities to design and knit seamless garments equipped with sensors for biomedical applications. In this paper, we discuss the design and application of a wearable strain sensor, which can be used for biomedical monitoring such as contraction, respiration, or limb movements. The system takes advantage of the intensity variations of the backscattered power (RSSI) from an inductively-coupled RFID tag under physical stretching.

Maternal and postweaning high-fat diets disturb hippocampal gene expression, learning, and memory function.

We tested the hypothesis that excess saturated fat consumption during pregnancy, lactation, and/or postweaning alters the expression of genes mediating hippocampal synaptic efficacy and impairs spatial learning and memory in adulthood. Dams were fed control chow or a diet high in saturated fat before mating, during pregnancy, and into lactation. Offspring were weaned to either standard chow or a diet high in saturated fat.

Maternal and postweaning diet interaction alters hypothalamic gene expression and modulates response to a high-fat diet in male offspring.

Epidemiological data and results from animal studies indicate that imbalances in maternal nutrition impact the expression of metabolic disorders in the offspring. We tested the hypothesis that consumption of excess saturated fats during pregnancy and lactation contributes to adult metabolic dysfunction and that these disturbances can be further influenced by the postweaning diet. Adult male offspring from chow-fed dams were compared with males from dams fed a diet high in saturated fat (45 kcal/100 kcal) before mating, pregnancy, and lactation.

Urinary tract infection with Trichomonas vaginalis in a premature newborn infant and the development of chronic lung disease.

We report a case of a low-birth-weight infant with an infection of the urinary tract with Trichomonas vaginalis, who later developed cystic chronic lung disease suggestive of Wilson-Mikity syndrome. Although she had mild respiratory distress syndrome at birth, the extent of the chronic lung disease was out of proportion to the initial illness. We speculate that maternal infection with this organism may have resulted in an inflammatory response that led to its development.