Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

Researchers identify risks in pregnancy related specifically to obesity

Obese women run the risk of problems during pregnancy, labour and complications for the baby's health. A new study of more than 3000 expectant mothers confirms this, and also reveals that being underweight also has specific complications.

20 Apr 2012

EASL publishes new clinical practice guideline on ALD

EASL today announced the publication of a new clinical practice guideline (CPG) in the area of Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD), bringing the number of CPGs published to date to eight.

19 Apr 2012

Mississippi Gov. signs landmark anti-abortion law, other states restricting contraception, abortion access

The state's new law could effectively close the state's only clinic. Meanwhile, a law in Idaho designed to limit abortions is being challenged.

18 Apr 2012

No added HIV risk with hormonal contraceptives

An HIV prevention trial that pre-dates the shift to antiretroviral (ARV)-based approaches is nonetheless helping to answer some of the most relevant and topical questions the field is facing today.

18 Apr 2012

Excessive gestational weight gain as problematic as pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity

One out of every two women of reproductive age is overweight or obese. Researchers from the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute, from the University of Ottawa (faculties of Medicine and Health Sciences) and from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute set out to discover if overweight or obese women are in fact more likely to give birth to above average weight babies, as reported in the Journal of Maternal Fetal and Neonatal Medicine.

18 Apr 2012

Viewpoints: The missing debate on women; The true cost of care; Fair wages for home health aides

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just reported that the nation's teen pregnancy rate is at an all-time low. Increased contraceptive use appears to have played a significant role in the decline. The Guttmacher Institute estimates that without Title X services, hundreds of thousands more teenagers would become pregnant every year. Why does GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney think eliminating the federal money for family planning - $327 million annually - is wise?

17 Apr 2012

Air pollution can contribute to obesity in children

Overall, 17% of children in the United States are obese, and in inner-city neighborhoods, the prevalence is as high as 25%. While poor diets and physical inactivity are the main culprits, there is new evidence that air pollution can play a role.

17 Apr 2012

Gestational diabetes on the rise

Although the disease usually goes away after delivery, it can have permanent consequences. Not only can the mother be prone to develop diabetes later in life, but their babies are also at greater risk for chronic health problems.

16 Apr 2012

Abortion-restricting bills proceed in Ariz. and Iowa as new Miss. law targets only abortion clinic

A pair of bills passed the Arizona Senate Thursday to prohibit public money for family-planning from going to organizations that give abortions and to allow some businesses to avoid paying for contraception for employees. Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer also signed a bill banning most late-term abortions.

16 Apr 2012

Study contains warning for obese expectant mother

A new University of Illinois study contains a warning for obese women who are planning pregnancies. Even if they eat a healthy diet when they are pregnant, their babies will develop in an unhealthy environment that places the infants at risk for future health problems.

16 Apr 2012

Flu shots offered to populations at risk at the beginning of season

All Care Inala Medical Centre doctor Michael Ho said flu shots were becoming more popular each year. “Flu seasons tends to begin in late March early April to June,” he said. “More and more people are opting to get vaccinations because they are promoted well within the community.” He added, “It is particularly important for elderly people to be immunized because their immune system is already not at its best…This is also the case for people who have chronic medical conditions like diabetes, severe asthma, or heart disease. With their current condition, if they catch the flu they can end up with a worse outcome.”

12 Apr 2012

Efforts to improve maternal health in Uganda moving forward

This post on RH Reality Check examines a Ugandan court case "alleging that the Ugandan government failed to protect the ... constitutional rights to life and health [of several women] by allowing them to die in ill-equipped and poorly managed public hospitals, or failing to provide them with basic maternal care."

12 Apr 2012

Overweight moms with moderately high blood sugar raise health risk

Pregnant women who are overweight with moderately elevated blood sugar never set off any alarms for their physicians. The big concern was for women who were obese or who had gestational diabetes because those conditions are known to cause a host of health risks to the mom and baby.

12 Apr 2012

State roundup: Calif. essential benefits bill passes committee; Ariz. legislature OKs late-term abortion ban; States with longest doc waits

California Assemblyman Bill Monning, chair of the Assembly Committee on Health introduced AB 1453, which laid out a plan for what essential benefits will be covered in California under the Affordable Care Act. The proposed set of benefits is modeled on the Kaiser small group HMO plan

12 Apr 2012

Access to modern contraceptives, family planning services is human right

"In the developing world, an estimated 215 million women who want to delay or avoid their next pregnancy cannot exercise this right as they lack modern contraceptives, resulting in unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions and more than 100,000 maternal deaths," UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin writes in this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" blog post.

12 Apr 2012

Timing pregnancy an important health concern for women

A newly published article in the journal Nursing for Women’s Health highlights the importance of a woman’s ability to time her childbearing. The author asserts that contraception is a means of health promotion and women who work with their health care providers to ensure they are healthy prior to conceiving can minimize their risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth.

11 Apr 2012

FDA ‘ups’ safety warnings for blood clots on birth control pill labels

According to federal health regulators more information needs to be added to labels on a popular class of birth control pills that includes Bayer AG's Yaz and Yasmin, to show they may raise the risk of blood clots. A clot in blood vessels can prove fatal if it breaks loose and travels to the lungs, heart or brain.

11 Apr 2012

WHO publishes 'Programmatic Update' on use of ARVs to treat pregnant women, prevent PMTCT

The WHO "recently published a 'Programmatic Update' on the use of antiretrovirals (ARVs) to treat pregnant women and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT)," the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog reports.

11 Apr 2012

New 4th Edition of Practical Neurology for clinicians, residents and fellows

The new 4th Edition of Practical Neurology, the respected "real-life" guide to diagnosing and managing neurologic disorders, has been completely rewritten to known neurologist and chair of the Department of Neurology of Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

11 Apr 2012

Bayer announces updated labels for drospirenone-containing COCs in the U.S.

In agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that it has updated the labels for its drospirenone-containing combination oral contraceptives (COCs) in the United States.

11 Apr 2012

Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

Researchers identify risks in pregnancy related specifically to obesity

EASL publishes new clinical practice guideline on ALD

Mississippi Gov. signs landmark anti-abortion law, other states restricting contraception, abortion access

No added HIV risk with hormonal contraceptives

Excessive gestational weight gain as problematic as pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity

Viewpoints: The missing debate on women; The true cost of care; Fair wages for home health aides

Air pollution can contribute to obesity in children

Gestational diabetes on the rise

Abortion-restricting bills proceed in Ariz. and Iowa as new Miss. law targets only abortion clinic

Study contains warning for obese expectant mother

Flu shots offered to populations at risk at the beginning of season

Efforts to improve maternal health in Uganda moving forward

Overweight moms with moderately high blood sugar raise health risk

State roundup: Calif. essential benefits bill passes committee; Ariz. legislature OKs late-term abortion ban; States with longest doc waits

Access to modern contraceptives, family planning services is human right

Timing pregnancy an important health concern for women

FDA ‘ups’ safety warnings for blood clots on birth control pill labels

WHO publishes 'Programmatic Update' on use of ARVs to treat pregnant women, prevent PMTCT

New 4th Edition of Practical Neurology for clinicians, residents and fellows

Bayer announces updated labels for drospirenone-containing COCs in the U.S.

How innovation in dried blood spot testing is transforming neurological disease monitoring

Unlocking live single-cell functional insights

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

How innovation in dried blood spot testing is transforming neurological disease monitoring

Unlocking live single-cell functional insights

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

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