Morphological and clinical findings in placentas and newborns with a history of tobacco, alcohol, and other substance abuse during pregnancy.

Background: Exposure to toxins during pregnancy is the main modifiable behavior that affects the placenta and, consequently, the fetus. In particular, smoking is a recognized risk factor for negative outcomes. Our study pretended to examine gross and microscopic placental features in women who reported exposure to tobacco, alcohol, or other psychoactive substances.

Dynamic measurement of an angular Goos-Hänchen shift at a surface plasmon resonance in liquid.

We developed a surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-enhanced angular Goos-Hänchen (GH) shift measurement system capable of tracking small refractive index changes with high sensitivity in a liquid environment. Our method can be performed in angular interrogation schemes, where we demonstrate a simple zero-finding algorithm to locate the SPR angle instead of the complicated data processing algorithms used in conventional sensors. We also propose a displacement interrogation scheme for dynamic measurement of small refractive index changes in the sample.

More Tools for Evaluating Decidual Artery Disease.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy continue to pose the most important risks for adverse maternal and neonatal outcome. Among histological findings, decidual artery disease is one of the most common, one that has both good reproducibility among observers and whose abnormal vascular remodeling is the sole aspect of preeclampsia pathophysiology on which experts agree. Nevertheless, some aspects of arterial remodeling alterations are still under investigation.

Heterotopic Adipose Tissue in the Placental Parenchyma: Case Report.

. Reports of heterotopic tissue in the placenta are few and mainly include liver and adrenal cells. We report on adipose tissue found in the placenta.

Congenital heart defects and umbilical cord abnormalities, an unknown association?

Introduction: Few studies exist that research the association between umbilical cord characteristics with cardiac malformations. In this study, we describe a population of newborns with congenital heart defects (CHD) and the frequency of presentation of umbilical cord (UC) alterations, based upon the hypothesis that the continuity of the cardio-placental circuit can be affected by similar noxas during early development.

Methods: We carried out a descriptive study at a hospital in Bogota based on clinical records from newborns with congenital heart disease with placental and UC pathology results.