Review of pulse oximetry screening for critical congenital heart defects in newborn infants.

Purpose Of Review: The concept of using pulse oximetry as a screening method to detect undiagnosed critical congenital heart defects (CCHD) in asymptomatic newborns was first explored over 10 years ago. A number of studies were subsequently reported, which initially involved relatively small numbers of patients, low prevalence of CCHD and heterogeneous methodology. As a consequence, the majority of clinicians felt the case for routine pulse oximetry screening had not been proven.

Anaesthesia chapter from Saving mothers' lives; reviewing maternal deaths to make pregnancy safer.

This chapter concerning maternal mortality due to anaesthesia, reprinted with permission from Saving Mothers' Lives, is the 18th in a series of reports within the Confidential Enquiries into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH) in the UK. In the years 2003-05 there were six women who died from problems directly related to anaesthesia, which is the same as the 2000-02 triennium. Obesity was a factor in four of these women who died.

Maternal deaths from anaesthesia. An extract from Why Mothers Die 2000-2002, the Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths in the United Kingdom: Chapter 9: Anaesthesia.

This is the first of two extracts from Why Mothers Die 2000-2002, issued on 12 November 2004 by the Confidential enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH), reproduced with permission. The full report can be accessed via their web site: http://www.cemach.

Pregnancy in women with Type 2 diabetes: 12 years outcome data 1990-2002.

Aim: Twelve years' outcome analysis of pregnancies in women with Type 2 diabetes in a multiethnic geographically defined area.

Methods: Information about 182 women delivered between 1990 and 2002 was ascertained from a regional computerized database. The main outcome measures were rates of miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal/postnatal deaths, congenital malformations, birth weight, mode of delivery, and neonatal unit care as well as maternal morbidities of polyhydramnios, postpartum haemorrhage, pregnancy-induced hypertension/pre-eclampsia.

Cytological prediction of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3: does size of the lesion matter?

Objective: Our objective was to test the hypothesis that accurate cytological prediction of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 (CIN3) is related to the size of the atypical transformation zone.

Patients And Methods: Data on 340 women in whom CIN3 was diagnosed after large-loop excision of the transformation zone were recorded prospectively on a computerized database. These data were studied with regard to such variables as lesion size, age, parity, contraception use, and smoking status.