The significance of peripartum fever in women undergoing vaginal deliveries.

We investigated whether patients undergoing vaginal delivery who developed peripartum fever (PPF) had increased rates of other gestational complications. A retrospective study was undertaken comparing pregnancy complications of patients who developed PPF with those who did not. A multivariable logistic regression model was constructed to control for confounders.

Weight loss with a low-carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or low-fat diet.

Background: Trials comparing the effectiveness and safety of weight-loss diets are frequently limited by short follow-up times and high dropout rates.

Methods: In this 2-year trial, we randomly assigned 322 moderately obese subjects (mean age, 52 years; mean body-mass index [the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters], 31; male sex, 86%) to one of three diets: low-fat, restricted-calorie; Mediterranean, restricted-calorie; or low-carbohydrate, non-restricted-calorie.

Results: The rate of adherence to a study diet was 95.

The effect of epidural analgesia on labor progress and outcome in nulliparous women.

Objective: The present study was designed to investigate the influence of epidural analgesia on labor progress and outcome in nulliparous women.

Methods: A population-based study comparing women with and without epidural analgesia was conducted. Deliveries occurred during 1988-2006 at the Soroka University Medical Center.

The influence of meteorological factors on the emergence of preterm delivery and preterm premature rupture of membrane.

Objective: To evaluate the influence of changes in the atmospheric state on the incidence of preterm delivery (PTD) and preterm premature rupture of membrane (PPROM).

Study Design: The hospital records of PTD and/or PPROM over the year 1999 were reviewed. The current meteorological state was described by a set of parameters and their diurnal and seasonal variations.

Perinatal mortality: a sporadic event or a recurrent catastrophe?

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether women who experienced perinatal mortality in their first delivery had, in their subsequent birth, a higher risk for adverse perinatal outcome.

Methods: A population-based study was undertaken to compare all second deliveries of women with previous perinatal mortality in their first delivery to those with no such history. Deliveries occurred from 1988 to 2004 in a tertiary medical center.

Pregnancy outcome in congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type I.

Objectives: Congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type I (CDA I) is a rare inherited disease characterized by moderate to severe macrocytic anemia and abnormal erythroid precursors with nuclear chromatin bridges and spongy heterochromatin. Moderate to severe maternal anemia is a recognized independent risk factor for low birth weight (LBW) and complicated delivery. The aim of the study was to review the outcome of pregnancies in women with CDA I.

Timing of gestation after bariatric surgery: should women delay pregnancy for at least 1 postoperative year?

Bariatric surgery is both a popular and highly effective treatment for obesity. Pregnancy after these procedures has proved safe, with certain gestational complication rates lower than those associated with pregnancy in the obese. Current recommendations suggest delaying pregnancy until after the first postoperative year to avoid gestation during the rapid weight-loss phase.

[Stress and distress in infertility among women].

In the industrialized world, approximately 12% of couples suffer from infertility. As a result of its collective political and historical experience, Israel boasts one of the world's most progressive fertility policies ranging from hormonal treatment to In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). Approximately 40% of the causes of infertility are attributed to the woman.

Perfusion with lipopolysaccharide differently affects the secretion of interleukin-1 beta and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist by term and preterm human placentae.

The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on the secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) and of its natural inhibitor interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra), by perfused human term and preterm placental tissue. Eight term and eight preterm placentae were collected immediately after delivery; four term and four preterm placentae were perfused with control medium (without LPS) and the other four term and four preterm placentae were perfused with medium containing LPS. The release of IL-1beta into the maternal compartment by term placenta was significantly higher than the release by preterm placenta (p<0.

Idiopathic bleeding during the second half of pregnancy as a risk factor for adverse perinatal outcome.

Objective: To investigate pregnancy outcome in women suffering from idiopathic vaginal bleeding (IVB) during the second half of pregnancy.

Methods: A comparison between patients admitted to the hospital due to bleeding during the second half of pregnancy and patients without bleeding was performed. Patients lacking prenatal care as well as multiple gestations were excluded from the analysis.

Pregnancy outcome in women with psoriasis.

Objective: To determine pregnancy outcome in women with psoriasis.

Study Design: A case-control study of 145 deliveries in women with psoriasis during the years 1988-2004 was performed. For every birth, 6 births to nonpsoriatic women (n=860) were randomly selected and adjusted for ethnicity and year of delivery.

The relationship between urinary tract infection during pregnancy and preeclampsia: causal, confounded or spurious?

Background: Preeclampsia is a major cause of maternal morbidity, although its precise etiology remains elusive. A number of studies suggest that urinary tract infection (UTI) during the course of gestation is associated with elevated risk for preeclampsia, while others have failed to prove such an association. In our medical center, pregnant women who were exposed to at least one UTI episode during pregnancy were 1.

An increased risk for non allo-immunization related intrauterine fetal death in RhD-negative patients.

Objective: To investigate immediate perinatal outcome of RhD-negative patients carrying RhD-positive fetuses who received antenatal Rh immunoglobulin for the prevention of RhD-mediated hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn.

Methods: A retrospective population-based analysis was conducted comparing pregnancies of all RhD-negative women who received antenatal Rh immunoglobulin prophylaxis (anti-D), to RhD-positive parturients, during the years 1988-2003. All women were RhD-negative without evidence of RhD sensitization.

Pregnancy after bariatric surgery: a comprehensive review.

Background: Obesity continues to be a global epidemic, and strong evidence exists linking it with gestational complications such as macrosomia, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, gestational diabetes, and cesarean section. Bariatric surgery, a highly effective treatment for obesity, may prevent such complications in subsequent pregnancies.

Objective: This review seeks to describe the risks and benefits of post-bariatric procedure pregnancies, in comparison to both community and obese cohorts.

Ultrasound of the placenta: a systematic approach. Part I: Imaging.

Diagnostic ultrasound has been in use in clinical obstetrics for close to half-a-century. However, in the literature, examination of the placenta appears to be treated with less attention than the fetus or the pregnant uterus. This is somewhat unexpected, given the obvious major functions this organ performs during the entire pregnancy.

Clinical significance of uterine scar dehiscence in women with previous cesarean delivery: prevalence and independent risk factors.

Objective: To determine the prevalence and risk factors for uterine scar dehiscence in women following cesarean delivery (CD).

Study Design: Our computerized database was used to identify patients with recurrent CDs in the index pregnancy (1988-2002). Women with uterine dehiscence were compared to those without dehiscence.

Asthma and pregnancy: a review of two decades.

The prevalence of asthma among pregnant women varies among studies from 4 to 8%, making it by far the most common respiratory disorder complicating pregnancy. Controversy exists among the numerous retrospective and prospective studies regarding pregnancy outcomes of asthmatic patients. Overall, the literature indicates that women with severe asthma are at an increased risk for preterm delivery, low birth weight, preeclampsia and Caesarean delivery, especially in the absence of inhaled corticosteroid therapy.

Frustration from not achieving the expected reduction in maternal mortality.

Background: Maternal mortality ratio (more commonly cited as maternal mortality rate) is the number of maternal deaths that result from the reproductive process per 100,000 live births. Unfortunately, it is estimated that more than half of maternal deaths are not recorded as such. Worldwide data are probably based upon pregnancy-associated or pregnancy-related deaths only.

Development of abdominal pain and IBS following gynecological surgery: a prospective, controlled study.

Background & Aims: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) develops after bacterial enteritis that causes injury to the bowel mucosa. It's unclear whether abdominal pain or IBS results from gynecological surgery that could injure abdominopelvic nerves. The aim of this prospective, controlled study was to assess the incidence of pain or IBS in women undergoing elective gynecological surgery compared to non-surgical controls and to identify factors associated with their development.

Early maternal feeding following caesarean delivery: a prospective randomised study.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of early maternal feeding on maternal satisfaction and gastrointestinal complications on patients following simple and complicated caesarean delivery (CD).

Methods: A prospective, randomised study was designed including 179 women undergoing first or repeated CD. Women who were assigned to the early feeding group received clear fluids and solid food within 8 h of surgery, in accordance with their request.

Psychiatric illness and adverse pregnancy outcome.

Objectives: To identify the adverse effect of psychiatric illness during pregnancy on pregnancy outcome.

Methods: A large population-based study of deliveries (1988--2005) was conducted that compared women with and without psychiatric illness. Stratified analysis included multiple logistic regression models.

The clinical significance of bleeding during the second trimester of pregnancy.

Objective: This study aimed at investigating the clinical importance and pregnancy outcome in women suffering from bleeding during the second half of their pregnancies.

Methods: A population-based study including all deliveries between the years 1988 and 2005 was conducted. Comparison was performed between patients with and without vaginal bleeding during the second half of pregnancy.

Lack of prenatal care: an independent risk factor for perinatal mortality among macrosomic newborns.

Objective: To examine the association between lack of prenatal care (LOPC) and perinatal complications among parturients carrying macrosomic fetuses.

Study Design: The study population consisted of consecutive women with singleton fetuses weighing 4 kg and above, delivered between the years 1988 and 2003. A comparison was performed between parturients lacking prenatal care (fewer than three visits at any prenatal care facility) and those with three and more prenatal care visits.