Pregnancy and Birth

Patients with type 2 diabetes who are treated with bupropion (BU) for major depressive disorder (MDD) show significant improvement in sexual function, according to a study published in the February issue of Diabetes Care.

Although mothers with type 1 diabetes are less likely to partially or exclusively breast-feed at two months, diabetes is not an independent risk factor for the initiation and maintenance of breast-feeding, according to a study published in the February issue of Diabetes Care.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has notified health care providers that the Pregnancy section of drug labels include additional and consistent information regarding the potential risk for abnormal muscle movements (extrapyramidal signs [EPS]) and withdrawal symptoms among newborns whose mothers received the drugs in the third trimster of pregnancy.

Interpreting a high volume of mammograms ma not lead radiologists to find more cancers but my help them to better distinguish between malignant and non-malignant lesions, according to research published online Feb. 22 in Radiology.

Women who are extremelly obese may not need to gain as much weight during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy as current guidelnes recommend, according to research presented at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, held from Feb. 7 to 12 in San Francisco.

In utero and early infancy exposure to diagnostic X-rays may increase the risk for childhood cancers, according to research published online Feb. 10 in BMJ.

Women who administer their own analgesia (patient-controlled epidural analgesia [PCEA]) during labor as compared to being administered a continuous epidural infusion (CEI) use less analgesia but experience similar levels of satisfaction, according to research presented at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, held from Feb. 7 to 12 in San Francisco

Consumption of folate prior to or during pregnancy does not appear to protect women from spontaneous preterm delivery, according to data presented at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, held from Feb, 7 to 12 in San Francisco

Public-sector research institutions (PSRIs) appear to play a bigger role in drug discovery than was previously thought, contributing to the discovery of about 10 to 20 percent of drugs approved for new drug applications since 1990, according to research publisted in the Feb. 10 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Prenatal surgery for myelomeningocele decreases the need for shunting and improves motor outcomes at 30 months, though it is linked to an increased risk of preterm delivery and uterine dehiscence at delivery, according to a study published online Feb 9 in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Infants exposed to HIV in the womb, but not infected at birth, have lower infant-specific antibody responses against some diseases, compared to infants not exposed to HIV, according to a study published in the Feb. 8 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association

To ascertain if levobupivcaine can serve as a safe and effective option for women undergoing elective cesarean-section, Dr. I Gunusen, Department ofAnesthesiology and Reanimation at Egee University Faculty of Medicine, Turkey, and colleagues a randomized study of 120 pregnant women.

I was recently asked by WebMD to comment on a newly published study that highlights a possible link between epilepsy, its treatment, and infertility, but a finding in the study has broader implications for all patients trying to conceive. First, a little about the study, and afterwards I will show how it applies to everyone trying to build a family.

Modern medicine recognizes the potential impact of stress on physical well-being, but can stress pass through the mother to the fetus? Indeed, it has been hypothesized that maternal chronic stress can alter the uterine environment and may affect length of gestation, fetal growth, birth weight, and spontaneous preterm birth. Similarly, research on cortisol levels in fetuses and mothers has found that anxiety in mothers can affect the function of the placenta. With so much evidence pointing to the interaction between maternal psychological well-being and fetal wellness, there has become an increased need to find effective, nonpharmacological interventions for pregnant women.

Compared to nondiabetic women, women with diabetes and high glucose levels during pregnancy tend to have babies with high birth weights. Moreover, it is thought that these offspring are at greater risk for obesity than those children born to women without diabetes. But is the larger body size due to greater lean mass in addition to greater fat mass?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning that terbutaline administered by injection or through an infusion pump should not be used in pregnant women for prevention or prolonged (beyond 48-72 hours) treatment of preterm labor due to the potential for serious maternal heart problems and death.

Prenatal screening and treatment of pregnant women can prevent chlamydial infection among neonates.

CDC recommends routine vaccination to prevent 17 vaccine-preventable diseases that occur in infants, children, adolescents, or adults. This report provides information for clinicians and other health-care providers about concerns that commonly arise when vaccinating persons of various ages.

Women do not appear more likely to seek out psychiatric help after a first-trimester abortion than before one, according to research published in the Jan. 27 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Aortic dissection is rare in women with biscuspid aortic valve (BAV) who are pregnant, according to a study published in the January issue of The American Journal of Cardiology.

Antioxidant supplementation in subfertile men may increase the likelihood of pregnancy and live births for couples undergoing assisted reproduction techniques, according to a review published online Jan. 19 in the Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews

Treatment with recombinant human prolactin (r-hPRL) increases milk volume, induces changes in milk composition similar to those that take place in regular lactogenesis, and increases antimicrobially active oligosaccharide concentrations for women who have both prolactin and lactation insufficiency, according to a study published online Jan. 24 in Pediatrics.

Family physicians have training and knowledge gaps that result in missed opportunities to offer intrauterine contraception (IUC) as a form of birth control to eligible patients, according to a study published online Dec. 3 in Contraception.

Active smoking has a modest effect on the risk of developing breast cancer, according to a study published in the Jan. 24 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicince.

A 30 y/o woman, P1001, sought a second opinion from me regarding the following situation: She just had her first baby, and has a history of symptomatic endometriosis including some difficulty in achieving pregnancy (but did so without medical intervention). She was advised by another physician that she should use either depo or the progestin only pill for the next 6-12 months (while she is breastfeeding) to prevent the progression of endometriosis.