Season of conception and risk of hypertensive disorder during pregnancy.

Background: Hypertensive Disorder during Pregnancy (HDP) is the most prevalent obstetric conditions in maternal health, but the etiology of most cases remains unexplained. Seasonal variations in the conception of HDP may offer insights into the potential seasonal-specific risk factors.

Methods: Data were sourced from the China's National Maternal Near Miss Surveillance System (NMNMSS) between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2021.

Incidence and predictors of adverse birth outcomes among women who gave birth at Assosa general hospital, Northwest Ethiopia: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Adverse birth outcomes are a significant public health problem worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Adverse birth outcomes have significant immediate and long-term health consequences for infants and their families. Understanding the determinants of adverse birth outcomes is crucial to effective interventions.

Exploring the influence of pregnancy on cognitive function in women: a systematic review.

Background: Pregnancy has been increasingly recognized for its potential impact on cognitive function influenced significantly by hormonal fluctuations such as estrogen and progesterone. However, the findings from research in this area remain debated, often varying with individual factors and pregnancy trimesters.

Objective: This study aims to systematically review existing literature and empirical research to better understand the phenomenon known as "pregnancy brain" and its association with cognitive change.

A community-based father education intervention on breastfeeding practice in Ethiopia: a quasi-experimental study.

Background: Breastfeeding is the cornerstone of a newborn's nutrition, containing crucial nutritional components. While a substantial body of research focuses on mothers, there is limited understanding regarding effective strategies to engage fathers in promoting breastfeeding practices. Therefore, this quasi-experimental study investigated a community-based intervention to improve breastfeeding exclusivity and initiation rates by targeting fathers in breastfeeding education.

Reduced fetal movements and COVID-19 infection: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Fetal movements are an important indicator of fetal well-being; therefore, reduced fetal movements (RFMs) can indicate fetal compromise. RFM is associated with fetal growth restriction (FGR) and intrauterine fetal death (IUFD). Studies have implied that COVID-19 infection increases the risk of adverse fetal outcomes, such as preterm birth and IUFD.

Fetal cardiac function in pregnancy affected by congenital heart disease: protocol for a multicentre prospective cohort study.

Background: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common fetal malformation, and it can result first in cardiac remodeling and dysfunction and later in cardiac failure and hydrops. A limited number of studies have evaluated cardiac function in fetuses affected by CHD. Functional parameters could potentially identify fetuses at risk of cardiac failure before its development.

Low-dose aspirin for the prevention of preeclampsia in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of low-dose aspirin (LDA) in preventing preeclampsia among pregnant women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), given the increased susceptibility of this population to preeclampsia development.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on pregnant women with PCOS who delivered between January 1, 2018 and February 10, 2024 at our institution. Clinical characteristics and obstetric data were extracted from medical records.

COVID-19 status and utilisation of essential maternal and child healthcare services during the pandemic in Ahmedabad, India.

Background: Access to essential healthcare services is pertinent to the achievement of universal health coverage in any nation. The COVID-19 lockdown was used to mitigate the spread of the pandemic. Consequently, there was a reduction in the Utilisation of Basic Healthcare Services (UBHS) in diverse dimensions.

Is maternal diabetes during pregnancy associated with neurodevelopmental, cognitive and behavioural outcomes in children? Insights from individual participant data meta-analysis in ten birth cohorts.

Background: Growing evidence shows that dysregulated metabolic intrauterine environments can affect offspring's neurodevelopment and behaviour. However, the results of individual cohort studies have been inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the association between maternal diabetes before pregnancy and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) with neurodevelopmental, cognitive and behavioural outcomes in children.

Improving UK data on avoidable perinatal brain injury: review of data dictionaries and consultation.

Background: High quality data is important to understanding epidemiology and supporting improvement efforts in perinatal brain injury. It is not clear which data items relevant to brain injury are captured across UK sources of routinely collected data, nor what needs to be done to ensure that those sources are fit for purpose in improving care.

Methods: We reviewed data dictionaries of four main UK perinatal data sources and consulted a multi-professional group (N = 27) with expertise in neonatal/maternity care, statistics, and clinical negligence.

Pregnant women's choices for preventing respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Introduction: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in infants and can lead to severe respiratory distress, especially in very young infants. No specific treatments exist for RSV. However, new preventative strategies have become available including RSV vaccine for pregnant women and monoclonal antibody for infants.

Efflux transporters in drug disposition during pregnancy.

Evidence-based dose selection of drugs in pregnant women has been lacking because of challenges in studying maternal-fetal pharmacokinetics. Hence, many drugs are administered off-label during pregnancy based on data obtained from nonpregnant women. During pregnancy, drug transporters play an important role in drug disposition along with known gestational age-dependent changes in physiology and drug-metabolizing enzymes.

Associations between Advanced Paternal Age and Adverse Reproductive Outcomes in the Nulliparous Pregnancy Outcomes Study: Monitoring Mothers-to-Be (nuMoM2b).

Objective:  The association between paternal age and adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) has not been well studied. We sought to determine whether advanced paternal age (APA) is associated with adverse maternal or neonatal outcomes.

Study Design:  Secondary analysis of 8,863 pregnancies from the Nulliparous Pregnancy Outcomes Study Monitoring Mothers-to-Be (nuMoM2b) prospective cohort in which both maternal and paternal age at conception were known.

Immune mechanisms in multiple sclerosis: CD3 levels on CD28+ CD4+ T cells link antibody responses to human herpesvirus 6.

Compelling evidence suggests a significant association between antibody-mediated immune responses and multiple sclerosis (MS). However, the exact causal relationships between these immune responses and MS remain unclear. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive examination of the link between antibody-mediated immune responses and MS via Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to identify specific infectious pathogens potentially involved in the onset and progression of MS.

Effect of postpartum oral furosemide use on postpartum readmissions and blood pressure trends.

Background: Oral furosemide postpartum improves the time to hypertension resolution in randomized control trials. Further investigation is needed to determine the impact of furosemide in routine clinical practice.

Objective: Real world study to assess impact of furosemide on rates of postpartum hypertension and readmissions for patients with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Management of hypertension in the early postpartum: A randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To evaluate blood pressure control during the immediate postpartum period in hypertensive women who had used methyldopa during pregnancy, comparing continuation of that drug with switching it for captopril.

Study Design: A single-blind, randomized clinical trial involving 172 postpartum women with hypertension who had previously used methyldopa during pregnancy at a minimum dose of 750 mg/day for at least one week prior to delivery. The subtypes of hypertension included were gestational hypertension, chronic hypertension, preeclampsia, superimposed preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome and eclampsia.

Participation of COX2/mPGES1/PGE2 in mouse and human endometrial stromal decidualization.

Background: Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is vital for embryo implantation and decidualization. Whether COX2/mPGES1/PGE2 pathway is essential for mouse and human decidualization remains unclear.

Results: This study showed that mPGES1 was highly expressed in the mouse uterus's subluminal stromal cells at the implantation site.

Antenatal care visits and its determinants among women in Afar regional state: North Eastern Ethiopia.

Background: Antenatal care is an essential component of maternal healthcare that plays a crucial role in promoting the health and well-being of both mother and baby. While previous studies have examined factors influencing antenatal care visits in other parts of Ethiopia, there is a lack of research specifically focusing on the Afar region. This study aimed to assess determinants of antenatal care visits among pregnant women in Afar region, Ethiopia.

Determinants of infants and young children feeding practices among mothers living in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study.

Background: The WHO sets evidence-based guidelines for infant feeding. Adhering to the WHO guidelines ensures that infants receive the proper nutrition and thus is associated with healthy growth and development.

Aim: To describe breastfeeding and complementary feeding practices (CFPs) for infants and young children and identify determinants of appropriate feeding practices.

Women and birth partners' experiences of cervical ripening at home and in hospital.

Background: In the United Kingdom, induction of labour rates are rapidly rising, and around a third of pregnant women undergo the procedure. The first stage, cervical ripening, traditionally carried out in hospital, is increasingly offered outpatient - or 'at home'. The current induction of labour rates place considerable demand on maternity services and impact women's experiences of care, and at home cervical ripening has been suggested as potential solution for alleviating these.

Towards person-centred maternal and newborn care in Ethiopia: a mixed method study of satisfaction and experiences of care.

Background: Person-centred maternal care is associated with positive experiences in high-income countries. Little is known about the transferability of this concept to non-Western, low-income settings. We aimed to explore women's experiences of care and investigate satisfaction with antenatal care (ANC) in relation to person-centred care and unmet psychosocial needs in rural Ethiopia.

An analytical cross-sectional study on optimal (timely or cumulative age-appropriate) routine childhood immunization coverage in the communities of Ebonyi state, Nigeria.

Optimal (timely or cumulative age-appropriate) routine childhood immunization coverage (the receipt of every recommended vaccine dose at the recommended age and time-interval between doses) will enhance optimal protection against vaccine-preventable infectious diseases (VPDs) which have been causing significant morbidity and mortality and recurring outbreaks among children younger than five years. This study evaluated optimal routine childhood immunization coverage, and the predictors, in Ebonyi state, Nigeria. This study was a baseline cross-sectional household survey within a cluster-randomised controlled trial and was conducted from July 2 to 16, 2022 among consenting mother-child pairs, in which the children were aged 5-23 months (subdivided into 5-11 and 12-23 months), in 16 randomly selected geographical clusters where the primary health care (PHC) facilities were providing maternal and child health care services including weekly routine childhood immunization.

Absolute membrane protein abundance of P-glycoprotein, breast cancer resistance protein, and multidrug resistance proteins in term human placenta tissue and commonly used cell systems: Application in physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling of placental drug disposition.

The placenta acts as a barrier, excluding noxious substances while actively transferring nutrients to the fetus, mediated by various transporters. This study quantified the expression of key placental transporters in term human placenta (n = 5) and BeWo, BeWo b30, and JEG-3 placenta cell lines. Combining these results with pregnancy physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling, we demonstrate the utility of proteomic analysis for predicting placental drug disposition and fetal exposure.

Abortion and unintended pregnancy in Pakistan: new evidence for 2023 and trends over the past decade.

Background: Despite induced abortion being highly legally restricted in Pakistan, studies in 2002 and 2012 showed that many women rely on abortion when faced with an unintended pregnancy. Following the 2012 study, concerted efforts were made to improve contraceptive services and to strengthen postabortion care. The availability and use of misoprostol also expanded in the past decade.

Exploring the Influence of PCBs Exposure on Neonatal Birth Outcomes and Neurobehavioral Development after 20 years of prohibition.

Despite polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been banned in Taiwan for two decades, epidemiological studies indicated that prenatal PCBs exposure may still affect newborns and their birth outcomes. The study aimed to investigate the association between PCB concentrations in umbilical cord blood and infants' birth outcomes and neurodevelopment. We recruited 100 pairs of mothers and infants, residing in Changhua and Yunlin countries in Taiwan from 2014-2016.