Educational inequalities and decomposition of the urban-rural disparities in maternal health care utilization in Ethiopia: further analysis of 2019 intermediate Ethiopian demography and health survey.

Introduction: The utilization of maternal health services is vital to prevent maternal and child health problems. However, there is limited evidence as to why rural women have lower utilization and educational inequality in maternal health services utilization in Ethiopia. Identifying the causes is the first step to achieving maternal and child health initiatives.

Fracture incidence in women: the impact of reproductive characteristics.

Background: Although endogenous estrogen exposure, influenced by reproductive factors (RFs), is negatively associated with fracture risk, there is limited and conflicting information on the association between these factors and the incidence of fractures. This study aimed to evaluate the association between RFs and fracture incidence (FXI) separately.

Methods: This longitudinal study commenced in 1999 and concluded in 2021.

Impact of maternal thyroid dysfunction on fetal and maternal outcomes in pregnancy: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Thyroid dysfunction in pregnancy can adversely impact maternal and fetal outcomes. However, the association between thyroid status and specific adverse outcomes needs clarity, especially in understudied regions.

Objective: This prospective cohort study aimed to illuminate the multifaceted associations between maternal thyroid dysfunction and feto-maternal outcomes in Gujarat, India.

The relationship between delivery fear and childbirth experience with the level of adherence to the WHO recommendations for a positive childbirth experience in Iranian women: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Childbirth experience is a unique event that involves psychological and physiological aspects influenced by social, environmental, organizational, and political factors. In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) introduced 56 recommendations for ensuring a positive childbirth experience at different stages of labor and delivery. Owing to the importance of implementing these guidelines, we have chosen to assess adherence to the WHO recommendations and their association with the fear and experience of childbirth.

Effective coverage of maternal and neonatal healthcare services in low-and middle-income countries: a scoping review.

Background: There is no consistent operationalization of effective coverage (EC) across studies. Therefore, this scoping review synthesized evidence on the definitions and measurement approaches, outcomes reported, and the factors that are associated with variations in quality-adjusted EC estimates of maternal and neonatal healthcare services in low- and middle-income countries.

Methods: Article search was conducted using PubMed, Embase, Google Scholar, and other databases.

Placental malaria and adverse pregnancy outcomes in Majang Zone of Gambella Region, Southwest Ethiopia: a histopathological and molecular study.

Background: Placental malaria (PM) is characterized by Plasmodium parasite sequestration in the placenta. It is responsible for various adverse pregnancy outcomes, including maternal anaemia and low birth weight (LBW). This study aimed to assess prevalence and risk factors of PM, and gestational malaria (GM), together with the prevalence of congenital malaria (CM), maternal anaemia, and LBW among parturient women attending delivery ward of Metti Health Centre (Metti HC) in Majang Zone of Gambella Region, Southwest Ethiopia.

Methodological report of a cross-sectional survey of abortion-related knowledge, attitudes and practices amongst health professionals in Britain, strategies adopted and lessons learned: evidence from the SACHA Study.

Background: Most surveys examining health professionals' knowledge, attitudes and practices around abortion have used convenience samples and have targeted doctors. Our goal in the SACHA Study, drawing on evidence-based strategies to maximise response rates, was to achieve a representative sample of a wider range of health professionals, working in general practice, maternity services, pharmacies, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) clinics and specialist abortion services in Britain, to explore the knowledge, attitudes and experience of abortion care and views on future models of delivery.

Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey of midwives, doctors, nurses and pharmacists in England, Scotland and Wales was undertaken between November, 2021 and July, 2022.

Psychometric properties of the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire version A among Chinese expectant fathers.

Background: Evidence on the mental status of expectant fathers indicates that their fears of childbirth (FOC) are of great concern. In consideration of expectant fathers' increasing involvement during pregnancy and childbirth, it is necessary to provide a reliable instrument to measure the psychometric properties of expectant fathers. The purpose of this study was to revise the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire version A (W-DEQ A) for expectant fathers, analyze the psychometric properties and explore its applicability to the Chinese population.

Education of household head and maternal healthcare utilization: the case of Bangladesh.

Background: The high maternal mortality ratio in South Asian countries could be attributed to poor maternal healthcare (MHC) utilization. Here household heads (HHs) are the main decision-makers of the households and thus can be key stakeholders in women's MHC uptake. We aim to investigate the role of HHs' education in MHC utilization and explore the educational status of male adolescents who will eventually replace today's HHs in the future.

Analysis of pregnancy and neonatal outcomes in 100 pregnant women with Rh-negative blood type.

Background: This study aimed to explore variations in prenatal care, delivery methods, influencing factors, and neonatal outcomes among Rh-negative pregnant women, so as to improve pregnancy healthcare for this demographic, raise the quality of maternal-fetal management, and safeguard the health of both mother and infant.

Methods: This study included 200 women who received routine prenatal care, exhibited no other pregnancy complications, and were admitted for delivery. They were divided into an observation group (100 Rh-negative blood type) and a control group (100 Rh-positive blood type).

Obstetric outcomes in women with vulvodynia and vaginismus: a systematic review.

Purpose: Vulvodynia and vaginismus are pain disorders associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. The few published studies addressing this topic were limited in terms of the different outcomes studied; hence, the purpose of our study was to perform the first systematic review examining maternal, neonatal and obstetric outcomes in patients with vulvodynia and/or vaginismus (VV).

Methods: We conducted a systematic review searching PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and SCOPUS until November 2023 for observational studies reporting maternal and/or neonatal outcomes of VV in pregnancy.

Multidisciplinary unravelling Cogan's syndrome post-C-section: insights into diagnosis, treatment and a possible identified new trigger.

We present a case series consisting of three female patients in their 30s with presumed autoimmune uveitis resembling Cogan's syndrome following caesarean sections (C-sections) with severe intraoperative bleeding and the use of chitosan-tamponade, exhibiting a combination of varying ocular and auditory symptoms postoperatively. Our patients displayed a range of inflammatory ocular changes, including stromal keratitis, panuveitis, retinal infiltrates, haemorrhages, optic disc swelling, and intraretinal and subretinal fluid, along with otalgia and hearing loss, consistent with typical and atypical Cogan's syndrome. Treatment involved systemic corticosteroids, resulting in variable outcomes.

Final Report of Trends in Pregnancy and Birth Survey after the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident: The Fukushima Health Management Survey.

This study aimed to assess long-term changes in pregnancy and birth outcomes after the Great East Japan Earthquake and the accident at the Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Fukushima Prefecture.　This is the final report on perinatal outcomes of the Prefectural Health Survey, which ended after a 10-year observation period.　Questionnaires based on a pregnancy and birth survey conducted by the Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey were sent to women who had received maternal and child health handbooks from municipal officers in Fukushima Prefecture.

OPtimal TIming of antenatal COrticosteroid administration in pregnancies complicated by early-onset fetal growth REstriction: results of a large, multicenter cohort study (the OPTICORE study).

Background: Early-onset fetal growth restriction as consequence of placental insufficiency frequently requires iatrogenic, preterm birth. Administration of antenatal corticosteroids reduces risks of neonatal morbidity and mortality following preterm birth and is most beneficial if the neonate is delivered within two weeks following treatment. International guidelines on fetal growth restriction pregnancies do not provide directives regarding the timing of antenatal corticosteroids, resulting in practice variation.

Postpartum Readmissions Among Patients with Adult Congenital Heart Disease.

Background: Given risks associated with CHD in the postpartum period, epidemiologic data identifying risk factors and timing of complications may be useful in improving postpartum care.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to determine timing of, risk factors for, and complications associated with 60-day postpartum readmissions following deliveries with maternal congenital heart disease (CHD).

Study Design: The 2010-2020 Nationwide Readmissions Database was used for this retrospective cohort study.

Prenatal exposure to phthalates and phthalate replacements in relation to chorionic plate surface vasculature at delivery.

Pregnant people are ubiquitously exposed to endocrine-disrupting phthalates through consumer products and food. The placenta may be particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of phthalates, with evidence from animal models suggesting impacts on placental development and vascularization. We translate this research to humans, examining gestational exposure to phthalates and phthalate replacements in relation to novel markers of chorionic plate surface vascularization.

Optimal implementation of an Ontario nirsevimab program for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) prophylaxis: Recommendations from a provincial RSV expert panel.

In June 2024, a group of 12 experts in the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) field representing a cross-section of healthcare provider types who treat and care for pregnant individuals and infants, assembled to discuss the implementation of a broad infant prophylaxis program with nirsevimab in Ontario. To gain insight on potential best practices founded on the experiences of other jurisdictions, the meeting comprised a review of the 2023/2024 RSV season programs in Spain, France, and the United States that implemented nirsevimab prophylaxis. The impact of nirsevimab in reducing severe RSV disease among infants during the first RSV season was assessed including the implications on hospital resources and healthcare system costs.

Association between obesity in women with multiple gestations and adverse obstetric outcomes: a study of an American population database with over 136,000 unique deliveries.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare obese and non-obese women with multiple pregnancies to determine the effects on pregnancy, delivery, and neonatal outcomes.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective population-based study utilizing data collected between 2004 and 2014 inclusively, from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project-Nationwide Inpatient Sample. A total of 137,303 multiple pregnancies were analyzed; 130,542 (95%) were non-obese, while 6761 (5%) were obese.

Female Pelvic Conditions: Sexually Transmitted Infections.

Sexually transmitted infection rates are increasing in the United States, with significant increases in the rates of syphilis among patients of reproductive age and, subsequently, congenital syphilis. Syphilis screening is recommended in sexually active patients 15 to 44 years of age in communities with high syphilis rates and in all pregnant patients at the time of diagnosis or prenatal intake, in the third trimester, and at delivery. Screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea is currently recommended in asymptomatic, sexually active patients younger than 25 years, as well as in older patients with risk factors.

Reliability and validity study of the childbirth skills self-efficacy scale.

This study aimed to develop a questionnaire scale to self-assess the normal childbirth skills. The study was designed as a cross-ectional and methodological. Participants were drawn from two universities in the Aegean region of western Turkey.

Labor and delivery unit practices and racial and ethnic disparities in severe maternal and neonatal morbidity among nulliparous individuals with low-risk pregnancies.

Persistent racial and ethnic disparities exist in severe maternal and neonatal morbidity, which may be due in part to differences in labor and delivery unit practices across hospitals. We used data collected from 184 hospitals in California (2015-2018) to assess whether nulliparous individuals with low-risk pregnancies differ by race and ethnicity in giving birth at hospitals that tend to use lower-interventional labor and delivery unit practices, and whether such differences contribute to disparities in severe maternal and neonatal morbidity. We classified labor and delivery units as higher- or lower-interventional based on a latent class analysis of survey responses about the frequency of using lower-interventional practices.

Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes of Labor Induction in Parous Women in a Selected Hospital in Sudan.

Background: Induction of labor (IOL) initiates labor artificially, aiming to prevent potential risks for both mother and fetus. However, data on IOL outcomes for parous women in the developing countries are scarce.

Objectives: This study evaluates maternal and neonatal outcomes in parous women undergoing IOL at a Sudanese hospital.

The role of DNA methylation in placental development and its implications for preeclampsia.

Preeclampsia (PE) is a prevalent and multifaceted pregnancy disorder, characterized by high blood pressure, edema, proteinuria, and systemic organ dysfunction. It remains one of the leading causes of pregnancy complications, yet its exact origins and pathophysiological mechanisms are not fully understood. Currently, the only definitive treatment is delivery, often requiring preterm termination of pregnancy, which increases neonatal and maternal morbidity and mortality rates, particularly in severe cases.

Isolated thrombocytopenia in pregnancy: A monocentric retrospective study of 63 pregnancies in 59 women.

Thrombocytopenia during pregnancy is often thought to be associated with severe bleeding manifestations. Three are the main disorders associated with this condition: gestational thrombocytopenia (GT), immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), and inherited thrombocytopenias (ITs). Reaching the correct diagnosis of this condition has relevant therapeutic and outcome implications.