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Hysteroscopic removal of polyps in women with unexplained infertility may increase their chances of becoming pregnant, concludes an intervention review conducted by the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group.

A study in Sweden has shown that the incidence of genital warts (condylomata) declined by 93% in girls who received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine before age 14. The study was carried out by researchers at Karolinska Institute in Sweden and published in Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

A study titled “Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation on Blood Pressure in Blacks” has shown that vitamin D supplementation significantly yet modestly lowered systolic blood pressure in a group of African Americans.

Postpartum depression is a problem for almost 1 out of every 7 women and nearly one-quarter of mothers are depressed at some point in the first year after delivery, according to a study in JAMA Psychiatry.

Hourglassing of membranes or prolapse of membranes through the internal os into the cervical canal is a difficult condition to manage, as it poses a high risk of rupture of membranes if rescue cerclage is attempted.

In patients with gestational diabetes mellitus, metformin is an effective alternative to insulin, according to the findings of a recent single-center randomized controlled study.

Patients with stage IVB, recurrent, or persistent cervical cancer that was not cured with standard treatment who were given the angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab lived 3.7 months longer than patients who did not receive the drug, but adverse events increased.

A study assessing the effectiveness of acetaminophen for neonatal pain relief found that use of acetaminophen shortly after birth may aggravate a subsequent stress response.

A study led by Contemporary OB/GYN Editorial Advisory Board member Haywood L. Brown, MD, has found that lack of seatbelt use during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of fetal death. The study was published online by the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology on February 25, 2013.

A meta-analysis of two Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) clinical trials shows a clear long-term survival benefit for intraperitoneal (IP) therapy over intravenous (IV) treatment of ovarian cancer. The results were presented at the 2013 Society of Gynecologic Oncology Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer in Los Angeles.

There is no evidence that plastic adhesive surgical drapes reduce surgical site infection rates, and some evidence that these drapes may increase infection rates, according to a third update of an intervention review and analysis conducted by the Cochrane Wounds Group.

Vitamin D deficiencies are common in women with primary ovarian insufficiency (POI), and serum levels of zinc, copper, and vitamin D appear to correlate with hormonal status, concluded a recent cross-sectional, case-control study.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has issued a list of 5 procedures that may be overused by ob/gyns.

A survey of medical students and residents shows that gifts to them from pharmaceutical company representatives remain common, despite efforts by medical schools to restrict such transactions. The research, which included participants from every medical school in the United States, appears in the February issue of The Journal of General Internal Medicine.

A study has found that nearly 1 in 4 women (23%) newly diagnosed with breast cancer reported symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) shortly after diagnosis. Black and Asian women were more likely to report such symptoms. The study, called “Racial Disparities in Posttraumatic Stress After Diagnosis of Localized Breast Cancer: The BQUAL Study,” has been published online ahead of print in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

In this first installment of Contemporary OB/GYN’s Point/Counterpoint department, two physicians discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the laborist (or “hospitalist”) model of care. What are the pros and cons for ob/gyns and their patients?

Tablets are redefining personal computing and making us evaluate what we need from a device and its software.

When a patient’s pregnancy test is positive but ultrasound is inconclusive, a stepwise approach is essential to make an accurate-and timely-diagnosis.

Medical advances mean nothing if our government and infrastructure are broken

Having unprotected sex is not the only impetus for use of emergency contraception (EC) among US women of reproductive age, according to data from a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nearly half the women represented in the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) said they turned to EC because of fear of contraceptive failure.

On October 24, 2012, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) of the CDC voted to recommend administering the tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid, and acellular pertussis vaccine (Tdap) to pregnant women with every pregnancy, regardless of the women’s previous Tdap history.

A large multiyear cohort study by investigators at ColumbiaUniversity in New York City shows limited short-term benefit and significantly higher cost for robotic-assisted hysterectomy than for laparoscopic hysterectomy. The findings, say the researchers, point to the need for “rational strategies to implement new surgical technologies.”

The common disorder now called “polycystic ovary syndrome” (PCOS) is imprecisely labeled, according to an independent panel convened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).The panel met in December 2012 in an evidence-based methodology workshop sponsored by the NIH Office of Disease Prevention and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

Women whose pregnancies are complicated by hyperemesis gravidarum in the second trimester are at a much higher risk of placental dysfunction disorders such as placental abruption and small-for-gestational age (SGA) babies, according to a study appearing in the January 30, 2013, issue of BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

A study presented on February 16 at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) annual meeting in San Francisco, California, found that around-the-clock labor and delivery (L & D) coverage decreased the odds of cesarean delivery in certain populations of patients in California.

A small study by New Zealand investigators shows that first-borns may be at higher risk of metabolic and cardiovascular disease (CVD) as adults than their younger siblings. The results, published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, may have important public health implications.

A large, multinational study has shown that low birth weight (LBW) is tied to prenatal exposure to air pollution.

A first-of-its-kind study has determined that although African-American women may have lower levels of the biomarker used to measure Vitamin D levels-25-hydroxyvitamin D or 25OHD-older African-American women and Caucasian women require the same amount of vitamin D supplementation.