Interpregnancy interval and perinatal outcomes across Latin America from 1990 to 2009: a large multi-country study.

Objective: To determine the relationship of interpregnancy interval with maternal and offspring outcomes.

Design: Retrospective study with data from the Perinatal Information System database of the Latin American Centre for Perinatology and Human Development, Uruguay.

Setting: Latin America, 1990-2009.

Safety of benzathine penicillin for preventing congenital syphilis: a systematic review.

Objective: To estimate the risk of serious adverse reactions to benzathine penicillin in pregnant women for preventing congenital syphilis.

Methods: We searched for clinical trials or cohorts that assessed the incidence of serious adverse reactions to benzathine penicillin in pregnant women and the general population (indirect evidence). MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus and other databases were searched up to December 2012.

Steps for preventing infectious diseases in women.

Communicable diseases account for approximately 25% of deaths in most Latin American and Caribbean countries; illness from communicable diseases reaches 40% in developing countries. Mainly affected are poor women in rural areas. A medical approach is not sufficient to implement effective infectious disease prevention strategies in women, which would offset these numbers.

Estimation of gestational age by the length of the dorsal spine.

Gestational age assessed by dorsal spine length (DSL) was compared with that based on date of the last menstrual period (LMP). This study was performed in 70 newborn infants admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit requiring chest radiography, by which dorsal spine length was measured (figure 1). Gestational age ranged from 23 to 42 weeks.