Introduction: The postpartum period can be complicated by hemorrhage, frequently caused by uterine atony. Electrohysterography, allowing continuous monitoring of uterine activity, may be a promising alternative for early detection of uterine atony, and thereby contribute to the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage. Associations between electrohysterographic parameters postpartum and total blood loss were studied.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFetal asphyxia, a condition resulting from the combined effects of hypoxia and hypercapnia, leads to approximately 900,000 annual deaths worldwide. One cause is umbilical cord compression during labor-induced uterine contractions, disrupting the transport of metabolites to and from the placenta, and resulting in asphyxia. Current fetal well-being assessment relies on monitoring fetal heart rate and uterine contractions as indicators of oxygen delivery to the brain.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDoppler ultrasound is a commonly used method to assess hemodynamics of the fetal cardiovascular system and to monitor the well-being of the fetus. Indices based on the velocity profile are often used for diagnosis. However, precisely linking these indices to specific underlying physiology factors is challenging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol
December 2023
Objective: Uterine contractions are essential for childbirth, but also for expulsion of the placenta and for limiting postpartum blood loss. Postpartum hemorrhage is associated with almost 25% of the maternal deaths worldwide and the leading cause of maternal death in most low-income countries. Little is known about the physiology of the uterus postpartum, particularly due to the lack of an accurate measurement tool.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Preterm birth is the main cause of neonatal deaths with increasing mortality and morbidity rates with decreasing GA at time of birth. Currently, premature infants are treated in neonatal intensive care units to support further development. However, the organs of, especially, extremely premature infants (born before 28 weeks of GA) are not mature enough to function optimally outside the womb.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Worldwide, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), fetal growth restriction (FGR) and preterm birth remain the leading causes of maternal and fetal pregnancy-related mortality and (long-term) morbidity. Fetal cardiac deformation changes can be the first sign of placental dysfunction, which is associated with HDP, FGR and preterm birth. In addition, preterm birth is likely associated with changes in electrical activity across the uterine muscle.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Cereb Blood Flow Metab
February 2022
Residual blood flow distal to an arterial occlusion in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is associated with favorable patient outcome. Both collateral flow and thrombus permeability may contribute to such residual flow. We propose a method for discriminating between these two mechanisms, based on determining the direction of flow in multiple branches distal to the occluding thrombus using dynamic Computed Tomography Angiography (dynamic CTA).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHypothermia, if provided before coronary reperfusion, reduces infarct size in animal models of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Translation to humans has failed so far, because the target temperature is not reached in time within the endangered myocardium using systemic hypothermia method. Hence, a clinically applicable method has been developed to provide intracoronary hypothermia using cold saline, selectively infused locally into the infarct area.
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