The continuum of maternal morbidity and mortality: factors associated with severity

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to examine whether sociodemographic, clinical, and other service-related factors, as well as preventability issues affect a woman's progression along the continuum of morbidity and mortality. STUDY DESIGN: This was a case-control study of pregnancy-related deaths, women with near-miss morbidity, and those with other severe, but not life threatening, morbidity. Factors associated with maternal outcome were examined. RESULTS: Provider factors (related to preventability) and clinical diagnosis were significantly associated with progression along the continuum after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics (P < .01 for both associations). CONCLUSION: In order to improve mortality rates, we must understand maternal morbidity and how it may lead to death. This study shows that important initiatives include addressing preventability, in particular, provider factors, which may play a role in moving women along the continuum of morbidity and mortality.     

Screening for partner violence during pregnancy.

OBJECTIVES: An analysis of the international literature on partner violence provides insights for health care providers caring for women. METHODS: The current literature on partner violence epidemiology, screening, and interventions was reviewed, focusing on pregnancy. RESULTS: Adolescent girls and pregnant women are at highest risk for partner violence and homicide. CONCLUSIONS: Health care providers need to offer clinical screening and interventions to prevent consequences of partner violence, including homicide.     

Prepregnancy body mass index and adverse pregnancy outcomes

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between prepregnancy BMI, and adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. METHOD: In this retrospective cohort study 916 consecutive singleton gestations were included who gave birth between 1 January 2006 and 31 August 2006 at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Udine, Italy. Statistical analysis was performed using univaried logistic regression and measured by odds ratio. RESULTS: The obese patients had a statistically, significantly increased incidence of Caesarean section (OR = 2.17, p = 0.009). Women with overweight (OR = 2.43, p = 0.002) and obese weight (OR = 4.86, p < 0.0001) were at increased risk for preterm deliveries. The pre-eclampsia and the fetal macrosomia (> or =4,000 g) were increased in obese women (OR = 5.68, p < 0.0001; OR = 2.58, p = 0.033, respectively). CONCLUSION: Maternal prepregnancy obesity is significantly associated with increased risk of Caesarean section, preterm delivery, pre-eclampsia and macrosomia.     

妊娠期高血压疾病严重并发症的发生规律及其对母儿的影响

目的探讨妊娠期高血压疾病严重并发症的发生规律及其对孕产妇和围产儿的影响。方法对1995-2004年南方医科大学南方医院、珠江医院、广州市第二人民医院和广州市番禺区何贤纪念医院共71020例孕妇中的4107例妊娠期高血压疾病患者的临床资料进行回顾性分析。结果（1）妊娠期高血压疾病发生率：为5．78％（4107／71020）,其中重度子痫前期为27．78％（1141／4107）,轻度子痫前期为72．22％（2966／4107）。（2）妊娠期高血压疾病严重并发症发生率：胎盘早剥为1．68％（69／4107）,DIC为1．36％（56／4107）,妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病为1．05％（43／4107）,肾功能衰竭为0．97％（40／4107）,脑血管意外为0．58％（24／4107）,溶血、肝酶升高、低血小板计数（HELLP）综合征为0．51％（21／4107）。（3）孕产妇死亡：孕产妇均死于多重并发症,死亡率为0．19％（8／4107）,死亡专率为11．26／10万（8／71020）,死亡病例中,脑血管意外4例次（17％,4／24）,HELLP综合征2例次（10％,2／21）,DIC3例次（5％,3／56）,妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病1例（2％,1／43）。（4）围产儿死亡：围产儿死亡率为3．01％（130／4319）。死亡病例中,孕产妇发生胎盘早剥33例（43％,33／77）,HELLP综合征10例（42％,10／24）,DIC22例（34％,22／64）,肾功能衰竭11例（25％,11／44）,脑血管意外6例（24％,6／25）,妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病8例（16％,8／49）。结论（1）妊娠期高血压疾病严重并发症的发生率由高到低依次为：胎盘早剥、DIC、妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病、肾功能衰竭、脑血管意外、HELLP综合征。（2）致孕产妇死亡的并发症依次为：脑血管意外、HELLP综合征、DIC和妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病。（3）致围产儿死亡的孕妇并发症依次为：胎盘早剥、HELLP综合征、DIC、肾功能衰竭、脑血管意外和妊娠期高血压疾病性心脏病。     

Women's use of complementary and alternative medicines during pregnancy: A cross-sectional study

Objective

to determine the prevalence of women's use of complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) during pregnancy in the UK, reasons for use, who recommended CAM, and the characteristics of women that are associated with use of CAM during pregnancy.

Design

cross-sectional questionnaire.

Setting

Birmingham Women's Hospital.

Participants

315 postnatal women were surveyed while on the postnatal ward.

Findings

the questionnaire response rate was 89% (315/355). CAM use during pregnancy was reported by 180 women (57.1%). CAM users differed significantly from non-CAM users by education level, parity and previous CAM use before pregnancy. Vitamins (34.9%), massage therapy (14.0%), yoga (11.1%) and relaxation (10.2%) were the most commonly reported uses of CAM. 33.0% of women reported they did not disclose their use of CAM to a doctor or midwife, and 81.3% were not asked by their doctor or midwife about their use of CAM during pregnancy.

Key conclusions and implications for practice

this study found a high prevalence of CAM use during pregnancy, which is within the range of findings of studies from Australia and Germany. It is important that health-care providers routinely ask about CAM use during pregnancy and are able to provide pregnant women with appropriate advice regarding CAM use.     

妊娠合并内科疾病产后出血的预防及处理

目前妊娠合并内科疾病患者产后出血的发生率有升高趋势,其预防和处理亦越来越受到产科医生的关注。本文就妊娠合并血液系统疾病、妊娠合并肝病、妊娠合并呼吸系统及循环系统疾病、妊娠合并重症感染患者产后出血的预防及处理问题进行讨论,为产科医生处理此类复杂情况提供参考。     

马方综合征患者孕产期及产后心血管系统并发症的临床分析

目的探讨马方综合征（MFS）患者孕产期及产后心血管系统并发症的发生情况及处理方法。方法对1994年至2006年在北京安贞医院心外科就诊的30例MFS妊娠妇女的临床资料进行回顾性分析。结果（1）30例MFS妊娠妇女中,3例产前检查中发现主动脉根部直径分别为50、53和58mm;2例分别在孕24周和27周时发生主动脉根部瘤或夹层合并重度主动脉瓣反流、重度心力衰竭;产时和产后出现心血管并发症2例。1例足月分娩中发生急性DeBakeyⅡ型主动脉夹层动脉瘤,另1例在产后第2天发现主动脉根部瘤、急性DeBakeyⅢb型主动脉夹层动脉瘤、二尖瓣脱垂合并重度反流和左心功能不全;1例患者在接受二尖瓣机械瓣膜置换术（23岁）后10年妊娠,剖宫产前3d停用华法林,改用低分子肝素（其他名称：克赛）2000U,抗凝治疗,每日2次皮下注射,母婴安全,未发生产后大出血、瓣膜血栓和细菌性心内膜炎,产后1年因主动脉根部瘤和主动脉瓣反流再次接受带瓣管道主动脉根部移植术;其余均为妊娠后4～28年接受心血管手术。（2）30例MFS妇女共有52例次妊娠,其中自然流产1例次、人工流产3例次;因心血管系统并发症而终止妊娠者2例次,经阴道足月分娩41例次（85％,41／48）,因心血管系统并发症剖宫产分娩5例次（10％,5／48）。产时和产后出现心血管系统并发症2例。（3）1例瓣膜置换术后患者安全妊娠和分娩,但1年后再次发生主动脉瘤变。（4）分娩至接受心血管手术的平均时间为（15±9）年,其后代MFS的遗传发生率为26％。结论MFS妇女妊娠后,如果不合并或合并轻度心血管系统病变,经阴道分娩是安全的;当合并重度心血管系统病变（主动脉夹层动脉瘤等）时,则以剖宫产分娩为宜。     

Women's use of complementary and alternative medicine in pregnancy: Narratives of transformation

BackgroundPregnancy and childbirth constitute a time of transition in women's lives. Many women turn to complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) during pregnancy. However, little is known about women's experiences of CAM in relation to their pregnancy and childbirth journey.Methodsa narrative study aimed to gain insight into the experiences of women who use CAM in pregnancy and to explore the contribution CAM made to their pregnancy and childbirth journey. Interviews were conducted with 14 women who had used a range of CAMs during pregnancy and birth. Data analysis focussed on the meaning and significance of CAM use in pregnancy and a number of core themes emerged.ResultsThis paper presents some findings from this research which reveals a narrative genre that can be defined as transformational. CAM has a positive transformational effect on women's experience of pregnancy and childbirth.ConclusionWomen's narratives illustrate the positive impact of CAM on the subjective experiences of pregnancy and childbirth.     

Use of herbal drugs during pregnancy among 600 Norwegian women in relation to concurrent use of conventional drugs and pregnancy outcome

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of herbal drugs by pregnant women in relation to concurrent use of conventional drugs, delivery, and pregnancy outcome.

Method

600 women at Stavanger University Hospital Norway were interviewed using a structured questionnaire within five days after delivery. Medical birth charts were reviewed with respect to pregnancy outcome.

Results

In all, 39.7% of the women reported having used herbal drugs during pregnancy, most commonly ginger, iron-rich herbs, echinacea and cranberry. Although 86.3% of the women reported having used conventional drugs during pregnancy there were few potential interactions between herbal drugs and conventional drugs. There was a significant association between the use of iron-rich herbs during pregnancy and high birthweight, and use of raspberry leaves and caesarean delivery.

Conclusion

Use of herbal drugs is common during pregnancy and indicates a need for documentation about their safety in pregnancy.     

Pregnancy complications in women with inherited thrombophilia

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine whether women with inherited thrombophilia have an increased risk of developing pregnancy complications. Methods: All singleton pregnancies with known inherited thrombophilia were compared to those without inherited thrombophilia for deliveries during the years 2000–2002 in a tertiary medical center. Data regarding inherited thrombophilia (International Classification of Disease 9th revision, Clinical Modification code 286.3) were available from the perinatal database in our center. Women lacking prenatal care were excluded from the analysis. Stratified analysis, using a multiple logistic regression model, was performed to control for confounders. Results: Out of 32,763 singleton deliveries that occurred during the study period, 0.2% (n=57) of the women were diagnosed with inherited thrombophilia. Using a multivariate analysis, with backward elimination, the following conditions were significantly associated with inherited thrombophilia: previous fetal losses [odds ratio (OR)=5.5; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.9–10.3; P<0.001], recurrent abortions (OR=9.5; 95% CI 5.5–16.3; P<0.001), fertility treatments (OR=3.7; 95% CI 1.3–10.6; P=0.014), and intrauterine growth restriction (OR=7.2; 95% CI 3.4–15; P<0.001). Perinatal mortality was significantly higher in women with inherited thrombophilia than in those without known thrombophilia 5.3% (3/57) versus 0.6% (477/32,763) P=0.017. However, inherited thrombophilia was not found to be an independent risk factor for perinatal mortality (OR=3.05; 95% CI 0.90–10.3; P<0.073) in a multivariate analysis with perinatal mortality as the outcome variable, controlling for recurrent abortions, IUGR, and gestational age. Conclusion: Inherited thrombophilia, associated with previous fetal losses, recurrent abortions, fertility treatments, and intrauterine growth restriction, was not an independent risk factor for perinatal mortality.     

Prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder in pregnant women with prior pregnancy complications

Objective. To assess the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in pregnant women with prior pregnancy complications.

Methods. Seventy-six pregnant women at a maternal–fetal medicine referral clinic were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire. Fifty-six women had a prior pregnancy complication (study group), and the remaining 20 had none (comparison group). Subjects were assessed with a questionnaire consisting of a modified patient-rated version of the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). The modified CAPS was used to approximate the prevalence of full or partial PTSD related to a prior pregnancy complication using two scoring rules, the rule-of-3 (original rule) and rule-of-4 (more stringent rule).

Results. The prevalence of full PTSD among women with prior pregnancy complications was 12.5% and 8.9% based on the rule-of-3 and rule-of-4, respectively. For partial PTSD, the prevalence was 28.6% based on the rule-of-3 versus 17.9% based on the rule-of-4. The most common type of complication was miscarriage, accounting for 73.5% of the reported complications. None of the women in the comparison group met criteria for full or partial PTSD.

Conclusions. The prevalence of PTSD in pregnant women with a prior pregnancy-related complication is considerable. These findings provide additional evidence that pregnancy complications can be experienced as traumatic, and as such lead to partial or full PTSD symptoms.     

Maternal and perinatal complications in triplet compared with twin pregnancy

Objective: To compare maternal and perinatal complications in triplet and twin pregnancies. Study design: Case-controlled study in the setting of a University Hospital. Each pregnancy of a consecutive series of 40 triplet pregnancies of 20 weeks or more was matched for parity and maternal age with two sets of twins delivered in the same year. Primary end points of the analysis were maternal complications and perinatal outcome. Results: Of the triplets 82% and of the twins 36% were a result of assisted reproduction. Pre-term labor occurred significantly more often in triplet than in twin gestation. Triplets had a significantly lower median birth-weight (1478 vs. 2030 g) and gestational age at delivery (32 vs. 35.5 weeks). The mean neonatal hospital stay was significantly longer in triplets, mainly related to the lower birth-weight, but there was no significant difference between triplets and twins in the incidence of major neonatal complications. Conclusion: This data of the anticipated perinatal outcome in triplet and twin pregnancies may be used to counsel women with a triplet pregnancy considering selective reduction to twins. All methods of assisted reproduction should aim at prevention of multifetal gestation.     

Association between maternal panic disorders and pregnancy complications and delivery outcomes

BACKGROUND: The objective of the study was to evaluate the possible association between panic disorders during pregnancy and pregnancy complications, as well as birth outcomes: gestational age and birth weight, as well as preterm birth/low birthweight in newborns. METHODOLOGY: Comparison of newborn infants (without any defects) born to mothers with or without panic disorder in the population-based large data set of the Hungarian Case-Control Surveillance System of Congenital Abnormalities. Main outcome measures were medically recorded pregnancy complications, as well as gestational age and birth weight, proportion of preterm birth and low birthweight. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Of 38,151 controls, 187 (0.5%) had mothers with panic disorders during pregnancy. Among pregnancy complications, anemia and polyhydramnion showed a higher prevalence in women with panic disorder. There was a higher proportion of males among newborn infants born to mothers with panic diseases compared to newborn infants of mothers without panic disorders. Pregnant women with panic disorders had a shorter (0.4 week) gestational age (adjusted t = 2.3; p = 0.02) and a larger proportion of preterm births (17.1% versus 9.1%) (adjusted POR with 95% CI = 1.9, 1.3-2.8). However, there was no significant difference in the mean birth weight and rate of low birthweight between the two study groups. CONCLUSION: Panic disorders during pregnancy were associated with anemia, a shorter gestational age and a larger proportion of preterm birth. Further studies are needed to confirm and explain or disprove the male excess among newborn infants born to mothers with panic disorders.     

Risk factors and obstetric complications associated with macrosomia.

OBJECTIVE: Macrosomia is associated with adverse maternal outcomes. The objective of this study was to characterize the epidemiology of macrosomia and related maternal complications. METHOD: Live births (146,526) were identified between 1995 and 1999 in the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program's Northern California Region (KPMCP NCR) database. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed for risk factors and complications associated with macrosomia (birth weight >4500 g). RESULT: Male infant sex, multiparity, maternal age 30-40, white race, diabetes, and gestational age >41 weeks were associated with macrosomia (p<0.001). In bivariate and multivariate analyses, macrosomia was associated with higher rates of cesarean birth, chorioamnionitis, shoulder dystocia, fourth-degree perineal lacerations, postpartum hemorrhage, and prolonged hospital stay (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Macrosomia was associated with adverse maternal outcomes in this cohort. More research is needed to determine how to prevent complications related to excessive birth weight.     

Intimate partner and nonpartner violence against pregnant women in rural Haiti

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between violence experienced by pregnant Haitian women in the previous 6 months and pregnancy-related symptom distress. METHODS: A total of 200 women seeking prenatal care at community health dispensaries in the Artibonite Valley were interviewed. RESULTS: Over 4 in 10 women (44.0%) reported that they had experienced violence in the 6 months prior to interview; 77.8% of these women reported that the violence was perpetrated by an intimate partner. Those who experienced intimate partner violence reported significantly greater pregnancy-related symptom distress (beta=0.23, P=0.001). No significant differences between violence perpetrated by family members or others and reporting of symptoms were observed (beta=0.06, P=0.38). CONCLUSION: The findings indicate the need to integrate violence screening, resources, and primary prevention into prenatal care in rural Haiti.     

Maternal plasma antioxidant status in the first trimester of pregnancy and development of obstetric complications

IntroductionOxidative stress is present in pregnancy complications. However, it is unknown if early maternal antioxidant status could influence later development of complications. The use of assisted reproduction techniques (ART) is rising due to the delay of first pregnancy and there is scarce information on its influence on oxidative balance.ObjectiveTo assess the possible relationship between maternal plasma antioxidant status in first trimester of gestation with later development of pregnancy complications, evaluating the influence of ART and nutrition.MethodsPlasma from 98 healthy pregnant women was obtained at week 10, nutrition questionnaires filled and women were followed until delivery. We evaluated biomarkers of oxidative damage (carbonyls, malondialdehyde-MDA), antioxidants (thiols, reduced glutathione, phenolic compounds, catalase and superoxide dismutase activities) by spectrophotometry/fluorimetry and melatonin (ELISA). Antioxidant status score (Antiox-S) was calculated as the computation of antioxidants. Diet-antioxidants relationship was evaluated through multiple correspondence analysis.ResultsMelatonin and carbonyls exhibited a negative correlation. No difference in oxidative damage was found between groups, but Antiox-S was significantly lower in women who developed complications. No differences in oxidative damage or Antiox-S were found between ART and no-ART pregnancies. High consumption of foods of vegetable origin cluster with high plasma levels of phenolic compounds and with high Antiox-S.ConclusionsIn early normal gestation, low plasma antioxidant status, assessed through a global score, associates with later development of pregnancy complications. Larger population studies could help to determine the value of Antiox-S as predictive tool and the relevance of nutrition on maternal antioxidant status.