The association of cerebral palsy and death with small-for-gestational-age birthweight in preterm neonates by individualized and population-based percentiles.

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine whether an individualized growth standard (IS) improves the identification of preterm small-for-gestational-age (SGA) neonates at risk of developing moderate/severe cerebral palsy (CP) or death.

Study Design: This study was a secondary analysis of data from a randomized trial of MgSO4 for the prevention of CP or death among anticipated preterm births. Singleton nonanomalous liveborns delivered before 34 weeks' were classified as SGA (less than the 10th percentile for their gestational age) by a population standard (PS) or an IS (incorporating maternal age, height, weight, parity, race/ethnicity, and neonatal sex).

Advanced lipoprotein measures and recurrent preterm birth.

Objective: Lipoproteins are associated with atherogenic and inflammatory processes, and these processes may be related to adverse pregnancy outcomes. We therefore examined whether variations in lipoprotein particle size and concentration are associated with preterm birth (PTB) <35 weeks' gestation.

Study Design: This is a case-control ancillary study to a randomized trial of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation to prevent recurrent PTB.

Maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin d and preterm birth in twin gestations.

Objective: To assess whether there was an independent association between maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations at 24-28 weeks of gestation and preterm birth in a multicenter U.S. cohort of twin pregnancies.

Photooxidation of ammonia on TiO2 as a source of NO and NO2 under atmospheric conditions.

Ammonia is the most abundant reduced nitrogen species in the atmosphere and an important precursor in the industrial-scale production of nitric acid. A coated-wall flow tube coupled to a chemiluminescence NOx analyzer was used to study the kinetics of NH3 uptake and NOx formation from photochemistry initiated on irradiated (λ > 290 nm) TiO2 surfaces under atmospherically relevant conditions. The speciation of NH3 on TiO2 surfaces in the presence of surface-adsorbed water was determined using diffuse reflection infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy.

Pregnancy outcomes with weight gain above or below the 2009 Institute of Medicine guidelines.

Objective: To evaluate pregnancy outcomes according to 2009 Institute of Medicine (IOM) gestational weight gain guidelines.

Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of a preeclampsia prevention trial among nulliparas carrying singletons. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (adjusted for maternal age, race, smoking, and treatment group) were calculated based on total weight gain below or above the IOM guidelines stratified by prepregnancy body mass index (BMI).

Change in mononuclear leukocyte responsiveness in midpregnancy and subsequent preterm birth.

Objective: To estimate the associations of change in immune response with preterm delivery, omega-3 supplementation, and fish diet.

Methods: This was an ancillary study to a randomized trial of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation for the prevention of recurrent preterm birth. In vitro maternal peripheral blood mononuclear leukocyte production of the anti-inflammatory cytokine, interleukin-10, and the proinflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-α, in response to stimulation with lipopolysaccharide, was measured at 16-22 weeks of gestation (baseline) and again at 25-28 weeks of gestation (follow-up) among women with prior spontaneous preterm birth.

Timing of delivery and adverse outcomes in term singleton repeat cesarean deliveries.

Objective: To compare the maternal and neonatal risks of elective repeat cesarean delivery compared with pregnancy continuation at different gestational ages, starting from 37 weeks.

Methods: We analyzed the composite maternal and neonatal outcomes of repeat cesarean deliveries studied prospectively over 4 years at 19 U.S.

Effect of interleukin-6 polymorphism on risk of preterm birth within population strata: a meta-analysis.

Background: Because of the role of inflammation in preterm birth (PTB), polymorphisms in and near the interleukin-6 gene (IL6) have been association study targets. Several previous studies have assessed the association between PTB and a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), rs1800795, located in the IL6 gene promoter region. Their results have been inconsistent and SNP frequencies have varied strikingly among different populations.

Bisphenol A and phthalates and endometriosis: the Endometriosis: Natural History, Diagnosis and Outcomes Study.

Objective: To explore the relation between bisphenol A and 14 phthalate metabolites and endometriosis.

Design: Matched cohort design.

Setting: Fourteen clinical centers.

Epilepsy in pregnancy.

Over 25,000 epileptic women deliver viable pregnancies each year in the United States. Although medical management is the first line of treatment, many physiological changes associated with pregnancy can make optimal treatment challenging. Medication dosage is adjusted based on side effects and seizure frequency, with the goal being no seizures with the lowest medication dosage(s) and side-effect profile possible.

Myasthenia gravis and pregnancy.

Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disease of the neuromuscular junction characterized by painless fluctuating skeletal muscle weakness. Disease exacerbations are more likely to occur in the first trimester or puerperium. A number of medications commonly used in obstetric practice can exacerbate the disease.

A population-based case-control study of stillbirth: the relationship of significant life events to the racial disparity for African Americans.

Stillbirths (fetal deaths occurring at ≥20 weeks' gestation) are approximately equal in number to infant deaths in the United States and are twice as likely among non-Hispanic black births as among non-Hispanic white births. The causes of racial disparity in stillbirth remain poorly understood. A population-based case-control study conducted by the Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network in 5 US catchment areas from March 2006 to September 2008 identified characteristics associated with racial/ethnic disparity and interpersonal and environmental stressors, including a list of 13 significant life events (SLEs).

Risk factors associated with endometriosis: importance of study population for characterizing disease in the ENDO Study.

Objective: We sought to identify risk factors for endometriosis and their consistency across study populations in the Endometriosis: Natural History, Diagnosis, and Outcomes (ENDO) Study.

Study Design: In this prospective matched, exposure cohort design, 495 women aged 18-44 years undergoing pelvic surgery (exposed to surgery, operative cohort) were compared to an age- and residence-matched population cohort of 131 women (unexposed to surgery, population cohort). Endometriosis was diagnosed visually at laparoscopy/laparotomy or by pelvic magnetic resonance imaging in the operative and population cohorts, respectively.

Risk factors for recurrent preterm birth in multiparous Utah women: a historical cohort study.

Objective: To describe risk factors for recurrent preterm birth (PTB) in the second and third birth.

Design: Historical cohort study.

Setting: Utah, USA.

An algorithm for the estimation of gestational age at the time of fetal death.

Background: Accurate assignment of gestational age (GA) at time of fetal death is important for research and clinical practice. An algorithm to estimate GA at fetal death was developed and evaluated.

Methods: The algorithm developed by the Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network (SCRN) incorporated clinical and post-mortem data.

Cost-effectiveness of trial of labor after previous cesarean in a minimally biased cohort.

Objective: To estimate the cost-effectiveness of a trial of labor after one previous cesarean delivery (TOLAC).

Study Design: A model comparing TOLAC with elective repeat cesarean delivery (ERCD) was developed for a hypothetical cohort with no contraindication to a TOLAC. Probabilistic estimates were obtained from women matched on their baseline characteristics using propensity scores.

The obstetric and neonatal implications of a low value on the 50-g glucose screening test.

Objective: To assess the relationship between a low 50-g 1-hour glucose loading test (GLT) and maternal and neonatal outcomes in women without diabetes.

Study Design: This was a secondary analysis of a multicenter observational cohort from a randomized trial of treatment for mild gestational diabetes. Maternal and neonatal outcomes were compared between women with GLT values < 90 mg/dL and those with results 90 to 119 mg/dL.

Declines in birth weight and fetal growth independent of gestational length.

Objective: To estimate whether the decrease in birth weight of term singletons in the United States and elsewhere over the past decade, despite trends in common maternal characteristics expected to contribute toward an increase, is attributable to the simultaneous decrease in gestational length.

Methods: Using data from Intermountain Healthcare, where a successful initiative reduced the number of early-term (37-38 weeks) elective deliveries, we examined trends in birth weight, being small for gestational age (SGA), and being large for gestational age (LGA) among 219,694 singleton neonates born between July 2000 and December 2008 at 37-41 weeks of gestation.

Results: Over the 8.

Karyotype versus microarray testing for genetic abnormalities after stillbirth.

Background: Genetic abnormalities have been associated with 6 to 13% of stillbirths, but the true prevalence may be higher. Unlike karyotype analysis, microarray analysis does not require live cells, and it detects small deletions and duplications called copy-number variants.

Methods: The Stillbirth Collaborative Research Network conducted a population-based study of stillbirth in five geographic catchment areas.

Risk of uterine rupture and placenta accreta with prior uterine surgery outside of the lower segment.

Objective: Women with a prior myomectomy or prior classical cesarean delivery often have early delivery by cesarean because of concern for uterine rupture. Although theoretically at increased risk for placenta accreta, this risk has not been well-quantified. Our objective was to estimate and compare the risks of uterine rupture and placenta accreta in women with prior uterine surgery.

Nitrogen dioxide at the air-water interface: trapping, absorption, and solvation in the bulk and at the surface.

The interaction of NO(2) with water surfaces in the troposphere is of major interest in atmospheric chemistry. We examined an initial step in this process, the uptake of NO(2) by water through the use of molecular dynamics simulations. An NO(2)-H(2)O intermolecular potential was obtained by fitting to high-level ab initio calculations.

Customized versus population approach for evaluation of fetal overgrowth.

Objective: To compare the ability of customized versus normalized population fetal growth norms in identifying neonates at risk for adverse perinatal outcomes (APOs) associated with fetal overgrowth and gestational diabetes (GDM).

Study Design: Secondary analysis of a multicenter treatment trial of mild GDM. The primary outcome was a composite of neonatal outcomes associated with fetal overgrowth and GDM.

Simplified mechanism for new particle formation from methanesulfonic acid, amines, and water via experiments and ab initio calculations.

Airborne particles affect human health and significantly influence visibility and climate. A major fraction of these particles result from the reactions of gaseous precursors to generate low-volatility products such as sulfuric acid and high-molecular weight organics that nucleate to form new particles. Ammonia and, more recently, amines, both of which are ubiquitous in the environment, have also been recognized as important contributors.

Perinatal outcomes in Hispanic and non-Hispanic white women with mild gestational diabetes.

Objective: To compare perinatal outcomes between self-identified Hispanic and non-Hispanic white women with mild gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) or glucose intolerance.

Methods: In a secondary analysis of a mild GDM treatment trial, we compared perinatal outcomes by race and ethnicity for 767 women with glucose intolerance (abnormal 50-g 1-hour screen, normal 100-g 3-hour oral glucose tolerance test), 371 women with mild GDM assigned to usual prenatal care, and 397 women with mild GDM assigned to treatment. Outcomes included: composite adverse perinatal outcome (neonatal death, hypoglycemia, hyperbilirubinemia, hyperinsulinemia, stillbirth, birth trauma), gestational age at delivery, birth weight, and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.