Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

Small uterine fibroids are associated with an increased risk of miscarriage

Early results from a pioneering study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill indicate that small uterine fibroids are associated with an increased risk of miscarriage.

13 Apr 2004

NZ Research helps difficult pregnancies

Before the 1960's knowledge of the intrauterine environment was like a black box, limiting clinical understanding, and monitoring of the fetus during pregnancy. Little was known about the fetus until after birth happened. Now that has changed dramatically, and there have been revolutionary advances, particularly in the last 20 years enabling clinicians to diagnose and treat problems which develop in the womb.

13 Apr 2004

Women with a history of pre-eclampsia are at increased risk of cancer

Women with a history of pre-eclampsia are at increased risk of cancer, particularly cancers of the stomach, breast, ovary, lung and larynx, according to a Columbia University study recently published by the British Medical Journal. Researchers studied 37,000 women in western Jerusalem, Israel, who delivered babies in three large hospitals between 1964 and 1976.

7 Apr 2004

New study could lead to new drugs to prevent premature birth

Dr Raheela Khan, of the University’s Academic Division of Obstetrics and Gynaecology based at the newly-opened University of Nottingham Medical School at Derby, is working with colleagues Dr Balwir Matharoo-Ball and Dr Dave Barratt in the University’s School of Pharmacy on the research looking at what makes some women go into labour before their baby is due.

6 Apr 2004

Australian research shows that ginger prevents nausea or morning sickness when pregnant

In a new push to test the validity of complementary medicines, a randomised controlled trial of ginger as a treatment for nausea and vomiting during pregnancy has found that a dose of 1.05 gm of ginger a day does help to calm nausea and vomiting.

5 Apr 2004

Women treated with radiation therapy to cure Wilms tumor can have healthy babies if entire pelvis was not irradiated

Women who were treated with radiation therapy to cure Wilms tumor as a child can go on to have healthy babies so long as their entire pelvis was not irradiated, according to a new study in the April 2004 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology-Biology-Physics, the official journal of ASTRO, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology.

5 Apr 2004

Penn State Hershey Medical Center awaits arrival of hospital's first sextuplets

The team of Penn State women's health obstetricians and Penn State Children's Hospital neonatologists at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center are preparing for the arrival of the first set of sextuplets in the medical center's 34-year history.

5 Apr 2004

WHO says more pregnant women getting antenatal care

The number of pregnant women in developing countries receiving antenatal care during pregnancy has increased significantly since 1990, signalling that an untapped opportunity exists to reach poor women with a whole package of life-saving health services, according to a joint report issued today by UNICEF and the World Health Organization.

30 Mar 2004

No increased risk of breast cancer from miscarriage or abortion

An international collaboration led by Oxford University concluded in last week's issue of The Lancet that there is no increased risk of breast cancer for women who have had a pregnancy ending in miscarriage or abortion.

30 Mar 2004

FDA Approves Pre-Filled Pre-Mixed Fertility Medication

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of Follistim®-AQ TM cartridge (follitropin beta injection) in the United States. Follistim-AQ cartridge is the first follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) treatment available in a pre-filled, pre-mixed solution, eliminating the need for patients to mix one or more vials of medication.

24 Mar 2004

Ban Chlorpyrifos and Diazinonon Impacts Child Birth Weights

A federal ban on two insecticides has resulted in a significant reduction in their impact on newborns' birth weight and length, according to a new study funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and other private foundations.

23 Mar 2004

20% of worldwide population lack enough zinc in diet

Up to one-fifth of the world's people lack sufficient zinc in their diet, while an estimated one-third live in countries considered at high risk of zinc deficiency, warns a comprehensive new report by an international group of medical researchers.

23 Mar 2004

Research suggests protein released from lungs could initiate labour

A protein released from the lungs of a developing mouse fetus initiates a cascade of chemical events leading to the mother's initiation of labor, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas have found.

22 Mar 2004

Breast feeding increases choline which means more brain cells

Five years ago, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers first reported finding that the nutrient choline played a critical role in memory and brain function by positively affecting the brain’s physical development. Differences in development influenced action, the scientists and their colleagues found. In animal experiments conducted at Duke University, both young and old rats performed significantly better on memory tasks if they received enough choline before birth compared with same-age rats whose mothers were fed choline-deficient diets. The latter showed deficits in the hippocampus and septums of their brains.

22 Mar 2004

Research suggest tea total only way to go when pregnant

The cardinal rule of a safe pregnancy is to avoid heavy drinking. However, new research indicates that even light to moderate drinking should be avoided as it may interfere with learning and memory in children as late as adolescence.

22 Mar 2004