Use of oxytocin during early stages of labor and its effect on active management of third stage of labor.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the use of oxytocin during the first and second stages of labor is associated with a higher incidence of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in pregnant women who received active management of third stage of labor (AMTSL).

Study Design: A secondary data analysis from vaginal deliveries in a hospital-based cohort study from 24 maternity hospitals in South America. The primary outcomes that were analyzed were moderate PPH (≥500 mL of blood loss), severe PPH (≥1000 mL of blood loss), and need of blood transfusion.

Association of anemia, child and family characteristics with elevated blood lead concentrations in preschool children from Montevideo, Uruguay.

Elevated blood lead levels (BPbs) have been identified in Uruguayan children in the La Teja neighborhood of Montevideo, but the extent of lead exposure in other city areas is unknown. Sources and predictors of exposure also remain understudied in this population. In 2007, the authors screened lead and hemoglobin levels in capillary blood of 222 preschool children from several areas of Montevideo, Uruguay, and identified predictors of elevated BPbs.

Diagnostic approach in allergic and irritant contact dermatitis.

Contact dermatitis is a highly frequent disease with a significant impact on the quality of life of the affected patients and a relevant socioeconomic impact. According to the pathophysiological mechanisms involved, two major types of contact dermatitis may be recognized: irritant contact dermatitis (ICD) and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD). The two types may, and often do, coexist.

Skin tolerability associated with transdermal drug delivery systems: an overview.

As transdermal patches become more widely prescribed, it is important that clinicians understand: (a) the common causes of skin reactions with these medications; (b) how to minimize these reactions; and (c) how to manage the signs and symptoms. Here we review published data for skin reactions with patch medications approved within the past decade. Overall, the most common application site signs and symptoms appear to be localized redness (erythema) or itching, sometimes accompanied by swelling (edema).

Histomorphology of prepuberal ovaries in the South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis Zimmerman, 1783).

The South American fur seal reproductive histophysiology is scarcely described. This study provides a histological description of prepuberal South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) ovaries as well as three-dimensional reconstructions of subcapsular crypts and primordial follicles. Ovaries from fresh dead animals were processed for histology and sliced into serial sections.

Evaluation of patients with head and neck cancer by means of 99mTc-glucarate.

Unlabelled: Preliminary findings have suggested that (99m)Tc-glucarate has tumor-seeking properties. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential of this tracer to evaluate malignant head and neck tumors by means of SPECT/CT software fusion imaging.

Methods: Eleven male patients with advanced head and neck carcinoma were included in the study: 9 with locally advanced disease and 2 with clinical suspicion of local relapse.

Use of prenatal corticosteroids for preterm birth in three Latin American countries.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of the use of prenatal corticosteroids in women who delivered prematurely in 3 Latin American counties and to evaluate the maternal characteristics associated with use.

Methods: A multicenter, prospective, descriptive study was conducted in 4 hospitals in Ecuador, 5 in Uruguay, and 3 in El Salvador between 2004 and 2008. Women who had delivered between 24 and 34 weeks of pregnancy responded to a questionnaire assessing sociodemographic characteristics, obstetric history, prenatal care, women's attitudes to health services and knowledge of preterm risk factors, prenatal corticosteroid administration, and characteristics of the delivery and neonate.

Risk factors for postpartum hemorrhage in vaginal deliveries in a Latin-American population.

Objective: To identify risk factors for immediate postpartum hemorrhage after vaginal delivery in a South American population.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study including all vaginal births (N=11,323) between October and December 2003 and October and December 2005 from 24 maternity units in two South American countries (Argentina and Uruguay). Blood loss was measured in all births using a calibrated receptacle.

Undernutrition during foetal and post-natal life affects testicular structure and reduces the number of Sertoli cells in the adult rat.

To test whether undernutrition during foetal to pre-pubertal life would have long lasting effects on testicular histology in adult male offspring, eleven adult Sprague-Dawley pregnant rats were divided into two groups: Control group, n = 4, fed ad libitum, during gestation and lactation (until 25 day post-partum). Underfed group pregnant females (n = 7) were kept in cages where only dams had access to food (standard rat chow, 33.5% of ad libitum intake of Control group pregnant dams).

Group B streptococcus colonization among pregnant women in Uruguay.

The prevalence of group B streptococcus colonization in pregnant women was 17.3% in the largest maternity hospital in Uruguay.

99mTc-HYNIC octreotide in neuroblastoma.

Disease status assessment of neuroblastoma patients requires computed tomography (or magnetic resonance imaging), bone scan, metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scan, bone marrow tests, and urine catecholamine measurements. There is no clinical experience concerning the evaluation of these patients by means of technetium-99m (99mTc)-somatostatin analog scintigraphy. Furthermore, these radiopharmaceuticals are promising imaging agents owing to their lower cost, availability, dosimetry, and ease of preparation.

Effects of pre-natal glucocorticoids on testicular development in sheep.

We tested the hypothesis that acute pre-natal exposure to high levels of synthetic glucocorticoid (betamethasone) would alter fetal testicular development through actions on gonadal glucocorticoid receptors (GRs). Pregnant Merino ewes bearing singleton male fetuses (n = 24) were allocated randomly among four equal groups to be injected intramuscularly with saline or betamethasone (0.5 mg/kg) either on day 109 of gestation or on both day 109 and day 116 of gestation.

Histology of lamb epididymal development.

To describe the distribution of the histological regions and their morphometry during epididymal development, 10 Corriedale lambs were castrated monthly from 90 to 180 days of age (n = 24), and their testes and epididymides were weighed. All animals were weighed monthly. Epididymides were divided into caput, corpus and cauda, and cut sagitally so that sections included all the length of the organ.

Dobutamine modulated Tc-99m MIBI scintigraphy in secondary hyperparathyroidism in uremic patients.

The aim of this study was to determine if low-dose dobutamine infusion can enhance Tc-99m methoxy isobutyl isonitrile (MIBI) uptake of hyperfunctioning parathyroid glands of patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHP). We studied 24 patients with chronic renal failure and SHP. Median age of the sample was 47.

Tocolysis and delayed delivery versus emergency delivery in cases of non-reassuring fetal status during labor.

Aim: To determine whether fetal intrauterine resuscitation using tocolysis and delayed delivery is better for the fetus than emergency delivery when fetal hypoxia is suspected because of a non-reassuring fetal heart-rate (FHR) pattern using conventional heart rate monitoring.

Methods: This was a prospective and randomized study, conducted between 2001 and 2004 at Pereira Rossell Hospital, Montevideo, Uruguay. The population consisted of 390 fetuses, in which intrauterine distress was diagnosed using electronic FHR monitoring.

Tumoral expression of BRCA1, estrogen receptor alpha and ID4 protein in patients with sporadic breast cancer.

Introduction: BRCA1 expression is downregulated in a third of sporadic breast cancers (SBC). Most of the tumors in which BRCA1 function is diminished do not express estrogen receptor alpha (ER). Recent studies suggest that the inhibitor of DNA binding (ID)-4 could participate in the hormonal regulation of BRCA1 expression.

Differential estradiol effects on estrogen and progesterone receptors expression in the oviduct and cervix of immature ewes.

In order to study the effect of estradiol-17beta (E2) on estrogen (E) and progesterone (P) receptors expression in oviduct and cervix of lambs, their respective transcripts (ERalpha mRNA and PR mRNA) were determined by solution hybridization and the receptor proteins (ER and PR) by binding assays after E2 treatments. Lambs (n=4 in each group) were not treated or treated with one, two or three i.m.

Effect of amoxicillin sulbactam in threatened preterm labour with intact membranes: a randomised controlled trial.

Objective: To determine whether treatment with amoxicillin-sulbactam in women with threatened idiopathic preterm labour will prolong the gestation and reduce preterm birth rates in a Latin-American population.

Methods: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial was conducted in 96 women who were hospitalized for preterm labour between 24 and 34 weeks of gestation at the Pereira Rossell Hospital, in Montevideo, Uruguay. The primary outcome measure was prematurity.

Meperidine for dystocia during the first stage of labor: A randomized controlled trial.

Objective: This study was undertaken to evaluate whether the administration of meperidine decreases the length of labor in patients with a diagnosis of dystocia during the first stage of labor.

Study Design: Women with term singleton pregnancies who received a diagnosis of dystocia and required an active management of labor were randomly assigned to receive either 100 mg of meperidine or placebo. The primary outcome measure was length of labor.

Effect of plane of nutrition on endometrial sex steroid receptor expression in ewes.

The effect of plane of nutrition on progesterone receptor (PR) and estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) expression in ovine endometrium was investigated. Rasa Aragonesa ewes (n=26) were fed diets to provide either 1.5 (Group C) or 0.

Reproducibility of patch test results: a concurrent right-versus-left study using TRUE Test.

Wide variations in the reproducibility rate of positive patch test responses have been reported. We hypothesized that a major source of non-reproducibility resides in the methodological pitfalls of routine patch testing. Simultaneous duplicate patch testing on opposite sides of the upper back was performed on 500 consecutive patients, using the TRUE Test system consisting of 2 panels, each one containing 12 standard allergens.

Effects of parity and body condition at parturition on endocrine and reproductive parameters of the cow.

The effect of parity (multiparous vs primiparous) and body condition score (BCS; <3.0 or > or =3.0, lean vs fat) at parturition on metabolic and endocrine profiles from 1 month before to 2 months after parturition were studied in 42 Holstein cows grazing on improved pastures.

Comparison of 99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy and sentinel node biopsy in the detection of occult lymph node metastases from cutaneous melanoma.

99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy has been proposed as a technique that can diagnose clinically undetectable melanoma metastases. The aim of the study was to compare the sensitivity of 99mTc-MIBI with that of sentinel node biopsy (SNB) in the detection of nodal disease. Twenty-eight patients with melanoma >1.