Substantial trace metal input from the 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption into the South Pacific.

The January 2022 eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH) volcano discharged 2,900 teragrams of ejecta, most of which was deposited in the South Pacific Ocean. Here we investigate its impact on the biogeochemistry of the South Pacific Gyre (SPG) using samples collected during the GEOTRACES cruise GP21 in February-April 2022. Surface water neodymium isotopes and rare earth element compositions showed a marked volcanic impact in the western SPG, potentially extending to the eastern region.

Turbid Waters and Clearer Standards: Refining Water Quality Criteria for Coastal Environments by Encompassing Metal Bioavailability from Suspended Particles.

Suspended particulate matter (SPM) carries a major fraction of metals in turbid coastal waters, markedly influencing metal bioaccumulation and posing risks to marine life. However, its effects are often overlooked in current water quality criteria for metals, primarily due to challenges in quantifying SPM's contribution. This contribution depends on the SPM concentration, metal distribution coefficients (), and the bioavailability of SPM-bound metals (assimilation efficiency, AE), which can collectively be integrated as a modifying factor (MF).

Properties influencing flux and diatom uptake of mercury and methylmercury from estuarine sediments.

Mercury (Hg) is a conspicuous and persistent global pollutant. Ionic Hg can be methylated into noxious methylmercury (CHHg), which biomagnifies in marine tropic webs and poses a health risk to humans and organisms. Sediment Hg methylation rates are variable, and the output flux of created CHHg are dependent on sediment characteristics and environmental factors.

Fetoscopic Endoluminal Tracheal Occlusion for Severe, Left-Sided Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia: The North American Fetal Therapy Network Fetoscopic Endoluminal Tracheal Occlusion Consortium Experience.

Objective: To report the outcomes of fetoscopic endoluminal tracheal occlusion in a multicenter North American cohort of patients with isolated, left-sided congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and to compare neonatal mortality and morbidity in patients with severe left-sided congenital diaphragmatic hernia who underwent fetoscopic endoluminal tracheal occlusion with those expectantly managed.

Methods: We analyzed data from 10 centers in the NAFTNet (North American Fetal Therapy Network) FETO (Fetoscopic Endoluminal Tracheal Occlusion) Consortium registry, collected between November 1, 2008, and December 31, 2020. In addition to reporting procedure-related surgical outcomes of fetoscopic endoluminal tracheal occlusion, we performed a comparative analysis of fetoscopic endoluminal tracheal occlusion compared with contemporaneous expectantly managed patients.

World war munitions as a source of mercury in the southwest Baltic Sea.

Mercury (Hg) fulminate was used as a primary fuse in World War (WW) munitions, and may consequently be a Hg source for impacted environments. Mercury is a conspicuous and persistent pollutant, with methylmercury (MeHg) acting as a notorious neurotoxin. Considerable amounts of munitions were intentionally dumped in the North Sea and Baltic Sea following the First and Second WWs.

Fetal Care Nursing-The Birth of a Specialty.

With the rapid growth of specialized fetal care centers (FCCs) across the United States, a new area of nursing practice has emerged. Fetal care nurses provide care in FCCs to pregnant persons experiencing complex fetal conditions. This article describes the unique practice of fetal care nurses necessitated by the complexity of perinatal care and the provision of maternal-fetal surgery in FCCs.

Effects of salinity and temperature on seawater dissolution rate of initial detonation agent mercury fulminate.

Mercury fulminate (HgFu) was used as an initial detonator for World War I and II munitions. Its presence in previously discarded and dumped munitions could potentially supply mercury pollution into coastal ecosystems where bygone weaponries reside. There is evidence that historical munitions have already contributed mercury pollution in coastal environments, and millions remain embedded in sediments and subjected to further weakening via corrosion under environmental conditions.

Mercury and methylmercury uptake and trophic transfer from marine diatoms to copepods and field collected zooplankton.

Mercury (Hg) and methylmercury (CHHg) are found at trace levels in most marine waters. These species, particularly CHHg, then ominously bioaccumulate through marine food chains eventually reaching potentially harmful levels in top oceanic wildlife. Accordingly, it is important to measure and evaluate uptake at environmentally relevant concentrations where trophic transfer initiates; during uptake in primary producers, and consumption by plankton grazers.

Outcomes of Monochorionic, Diamniotic Twin Pregnancies with Prenatally Diagnosed Intertwin Weight Discordance.

Objective: Monochorionic, diamniotic (MCDA) twin pairs are predisposed to various pregnancy complications due to the unique placental angioarchitecture of monochorionicity. Few studies have evaluated the outcomes of weight-discordant MCDA pairs without selective fetal growth restriction (SFGR) or the risk factors for development of SFGR. This study aims to describe the natural history of expectant, noninvasive management of weight-discordant MCDA twins and to evaluate risk factors associated with progression to SFGR.

The Use of Sequential Integrated Screening to Stratify Risk in Monochorionic-Diamniotic Twin Pregnancies.

Objective: This study aimed to identify differences in sequential integrated screening and early ultrasound markers in monochorionic/diamniotic (MC/DA) pregnancies complicated by twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and unequal placental sharing (UPS).

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study of MC/DA pregnancies evaluated between January 2012 and July 2017 at the University of California San Francisco. MC/DA pregnancies with ultrasound surveillance up to 26 weeks who participated in the California Prenatal Screening Program (CPSP) were included.

Utility of chromosomal microarray for diagnosis in cases of nonimmune hydrops fetalis.

Purpose: Chromosomal microarray (CMA) is recommended in the diagnostic evaluation of cases with fetal structural anomalies when invasive testing is pursued. However, the utility of CMA for nonimmune hydrops fetalis (NIHF) specifically is not well known. Our objective was to describe the overall yield of CMA in the diagnostic evaluation of NIHF, comparing isolated cases to those with concurrent structural anomalies.

Fetal Congenital Pulmonary Airway Malformation: The Role of an Objective Measurement of Cardiomediastinal Shift.

Objective: To examine the relationship between cardiomediastinal shift angle (CMSA) and adverse perinatal outcomes and hydrops in cases of congenital pulmonary airway malformation (CPAM).

Study Design: This retrospective study evaluated CPAM cases referred to our institution from 2008 to 2015. The primary outcome was a composite score for adverse perinatal outcome.

Stage I Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome: Outcomes of Expectant Management and Prognostic Features.

Objective: This article describes the natural history of stage I twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) including risk of progression to higher stage TTTS and pregnancy outcomes, and to identify risk factors for progression.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study of monochorionic diamniotic (MCDA) twin pregnancies from 2006 to 2016 with expectantly managed Quintero stage I TTTS.

Results: A total of 30 MCDA twin pregnancies with expectantly managed stage I TTTS were identified.

Prenatal Diagnosis of Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia: Does Laterality Predict Perinatal Outcomes?

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine laterality as a predictor of outcomes among fetuses with prenatally diagnosed congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of pregnancies with CDH evaluated at our center from 2008 to 2016 compared cases with right-sided CDH (RCDH) versus left-sided CDH (LCDH). The primary outcome was survival to discharge.

Utility of chromosomal microarray in anomalous fetuses.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the association of copy number variants (CNV) with perinatal outcomes among fetuses with sonographic abnormalities.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of anomalous fetuses evaluated at a single fetal center, who underwent chromosomal microarray (CMA) testing. Pathogenic CNV or variants of uncertain significance were classified as abnormal.

Polyhydramnios Affecting a Recipient-like Twin: Risk of Progression to Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome and Outcomes.

Objective: The significance of polyhydramnios of one twin in the absence of oligohydramnios of the cotwin in monochorionic diamniotic (MCDA) twin pregnancies (polyhydramnios affecting a recipient-like twin [PART]) is unknown. Our aim is to assess the risk of progression to twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) with PART, progression to ≥ stage II TTTS, and neonatal survival.

Study Design: This study was a retrospective cohort study of MCDA twin pregnancies with PART evaluated at a referral center from 2008 to 2015.

Non-Immune Hydrops Fetalis: Do Placentomegaly and Polyhydramnios Matter?

Objectives: Polyhydramnios and placentomegaly are commonly observed in nonimmune hydrops fetalis (NIHF); however, whether their ultrasonographic identification is relevant for prognosis is controversial. We evaluated outcomes of fetal or neonatal death and preterm birth (PTB) in cases of NIHF alone and in those with polyhydramnios and/or placentomegaly (P/PM).

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort of singletons with NIHF evaluated between 1994 and 2013.

Freshwater discharges drive high levels of methylmercury in Arctic marine biota.

Elevated levels of neurotoxic methylmercury in Arctic food-webs pose health risks for indigenous populations that consume large quantities of marine mammals and fish. Estuaries provide critical hunting and fishing territory for these populations, and, until recently, benthic sediment was thought to be the main methylmercury source for coastal fish. New hydroelectric developments are being proposed in many northern ecosystems, and the ecological impacts of this industry relative to accelerating climate changes are poorly characterized.

Diastolic Cardiac Pathology and Clinical Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome in Monochorionic/Diamniotic Twins.

OBJECTIVE: to identify differences in echocardiographic profiles of monochorionic/diamniotic pregnancies with early or mild twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), compared to monochorionic/diamniotic twins affected only by discordant growth or discordant fluid. STUDY DESIGN: retrospective evaluation of sonograms and echocardiograms of twin pregnancies referred for suspected TTTS. RESULTS: 112 monochorionic/diamniotic pairs were studied.

Monochorionic twins discordant for congenital heart disease: a referral center's experience and possible pathophysiologic mechanisms.

Objective: To describe the spectrum of cardiac defects in monochorionic (MC) twins discordant for congenital heart disease (CHD) in a referral center population.

Method: Retrospective study of all twin gestations undergoing echocardiography between 2000 and 2009 at our institution.

Results: A total of 356 twin pairs were evaluated during the study period, 202 for suspected twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and the remainder for other indications.

Effect of selective fetoscopic laser photocoagulation therapy for twin-twin transfusion syndrome on pulmonary valve pathology in recipient twins.

Objective: To investigate the impact of selective fetoscopic laser photocoagulation (SFLP) on pre-existing pulmonary valve pathology in the recipient twin in twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS).

Methods: We evaluated preoperative echocardiograms of all pregnancies with TTTS treated with SFLP at our institution from 2001 to 2009 (n = 76). Sixteen (21%) recipients had an abnormal pulmonary valve (stenosis/dysplasia, insufficiency or functional atresia) before SFLP.

Galactose content of baby food meats: considerations for infants with galactosemia.

Treatment of galactosemia requires a galactose-restricted diet. Although meats are not traditionally thought of as a dietary carbohydrate source, small amounts may be present in free form and/or bound to proteins or lipids. The purpose of this study was to determine the free and bound galactose contents of baby food meats.