Obstetrics News and Research

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Gynecology and obstetrics are twin subjects that deal with the female reproductive system. While obstetrics deals with pregnancy and its associated procedures and complications, gynaecology involves treating women who are not pregnant.

Doctors can be ‘conscientious’ providers of abortion

Exercising conscience in healthcare is usually defined as refusing to provide contested services, like abortion. But in an article to be published Sept. 13 in the New England Journal of Medicine, a University of Michigan faculty member says doctors can be "conscientious" providers of abortion.

15 Sep 2012

‘Rooming in’ benefits both mother and baby: New review

"Rooming in," keeping mother and her newborn in the same room 24/7 to encourage breastfeeding has been a popular initiative of The WHO/UNICEF Baby Friendly Hospital. A new review from The Cochrane Library finds some evidence that it does support breastfeeding, at least in the short term.

15 Sep 2012

Roughly two in five women in the U.S. do not use any form of birth control: Survey

Roughly two in five women in the United States do not use any form of birth control and many underestimate their risk for pregnancy, according to a recent survey about contraceptive practices in the United States.

13 Sep 2012

BRCA1/2 gene mutations lethal to human embryos

BRCA1/2 gene mutations, widely associated with breast and ovarian cancer risks in women, are, in principle, lethal to human embryos, according to new research conducted by three teams of researchers from the Center for Human Reproduction (CHR) in New York City, the Medical University Vienna in Vienna, Austria, and the Medical University Graz, Graz, Austria.

13 Sep 2012

Progestogens may avoid early child birth in women with prior preterm births

Pregnant women who have had prior preterm births may avoid a subsequent early birth if given progestogens, which are natural or synthetic forms of progesterone, a female hormone that naturally increases during pregnancy, a Vanderbilt analysis shows.

11 Sep 2012

Study reveals higher maternal death rates following abortion in Denmark

A new study of the medical records for nearly half a million women in Denmark reveals significantly higher maternal death rates following abortion compared to delivery. This finding has confirmed similar population studies conducted in Finland and the United States, but contradicts the widely held belief that abortion is safer than childbirth.

6 Sep 2012

Nurses, midwives can safely perform abortions, review of evidence suggests

"Abortions are just as safe when performed by trained nurse practitioners, midwives and physician assistants as when doctors do them, a new review of the evidence suggests," Reuters reports.

1 Sep 2012

UTMB to offer HPV vaccination against cervical cancer

University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston's Dr. Abbey Berenson has been awarded a $1.2 million grant to start a program that will provide a vaccination against cervical cancer to many hundreds of low-income women who receive health care services at UTMB.

30 Aug 2012

One in four women experience vulvar pain at some point in their lifetime

According to a study conducted by the University of Michigan, one in four women experience vulvar pain at some point in their lifetime. Like all medical concerns, vulvar pain causes both physical and mental stress. Additionally, vulvar pain can have an adverse effect on intimacy and relationships.

29 Aug 2012

$Fetal fraction of cfDNA does not vary significantly among pregnant women regardless of trisomy risk$

Fetal fraction of cfDNA does not vary significantly among pregnant women regardless of trisomy risk

A study published in The Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine demonstrates that the fraction of fetal cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in maternal blood is unaffected by the mother's presumed risk for trisomy, offering support for the use of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) for detecting genetic conditions such as Down syndrome in a broad patient population.

28 Aug 2012

Despite controversy, WHO not likely to change its stance on misoprostol use

Highlighting a recent report by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine about the use of the drug misoprostol to prevent postpartum hemorrhage and the WHO's inclusion of the drug on its Essential Medicine List, Guardian health editor Sarah Boseley writes in this post in her "Global Health Blog," "Seldom has there been a drug that has excited as much controversy as misoprostol."

27 Aug 2012

Conifer Health to provide comprehensive revenue cycle management operations for TAH

Conifer Health Solutions, a leader in business process management solutions for healthcare providers, has reached an agreement to provide comprehensive revenue cycle management operations for Titusville Area Hospital (TAH) of Titusville, Pennsylvania.

26 Aug 2012

Study provides new direction for research in bipolar disorder during pregnancy

The impact of bipolar disorder during pregnancy has been hotly contended among the research community. Now, a new study from Lawson Health Research Institute and Western University is sorting out the debate and calling for more targeted, prospective research.

23 Aug 2012

HIV-related stigma keeps Kenyan pregnant women from having babies in health-care facilities

The fear of being labeled HIV-positive is strong enough to keep mothers in one Kenyan province from having babies in health-care facilities, according to a study published online today in the journal PLOS Medicine. Communities there have come to see clinics and skilled care as mostly for HIV-positive women.

22 Aug 2012

HPV genotype may alter chemoradiotherapy outcome

Human papillomavirus genotype predicts whether patients with cervical cancer will benefit from concurrent chemoradiation therapy, study findings suggest.

20 Aug 2012

Peptide combinations might offer more effective cancer therapy

Two studies suggest that two peptide agents used either together or individually with a low-dose of a standard chemotherapy drug might offer more effective cancer therapy than current standard single-drug treatments.

17 Aug 2012

New DNA sequencing tests improve ability to analyze genetic disorders

Scientists at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School (UMDNJ-NJMS) have developed new DNA sequencing tests that hold significant promise for decreasing costs associated with diagnosing cancer and hereditary diseases, including cysticfibrosis.

17 Aug 2012

Continuous oral contraceptives provide earlier relief for women with dysmenorrhea

Taking oral contraceptives continuously, rather than as traditionally prescribed for each cycle, provides earlier relief for moderate to severe menstrual cramps -- dysmenorrhea -- according to researchers at Penn State College of Medicine.

16 Aug 2012

FDA accepts Teva's NDA for Quartette oral contraceptive

Teva Women's Health, Inc., a U.S.-based subsidiary of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for filing its New Drug Application for Quartette (levonorgestrel/ethinyl estradiol tablets and ethinyl estradiol tablets).

13 Aug 2012

UTSW reports successful delivery of quintuplets

Three boys and two girls were born Thursday, Aug. 9, to missionaries Carrie and Gavin Jones at UT Southwestern Medical Center, among the first sets of quintuplets delivered nationally so far this year.

13 Aug 2012