Abstract
Objective
This study investigated the effects of mobile health application designed based on mindfulness and social support theory on parenting self-efficacy and postpartum depression ...symptoms of puerperae.
Methods
We recruited 130 puerperae from a hospital in China and randomized them to an App use group (n = 65) and a waiting control group (n = 65). The App group underwent an 8-week app use intervention while the control group underwent no intervention. We measured four main variables (mindfulness, perceived social support, maternal parental self-efficacy and postpartum depressive symptoms) before and after the App use intervention.
Results
In the App group, perceived social support, maternal parental self-efficacy were significantly higher and postpartum depressive symptoms was significantly lower. In the control group, there were no significant differences in any of the four variables between the pre-test and post-test.
Conclusions
Our findings indicated that the mobile health application may help to improve perceived social support, maternal self-efficacy and reduce postpartum depressive symptoms. The finding of the mobile health application's effect extends our understanding of integrative effects of mindfulness and perceived social support on reduction of postpartum depressive symptoms and suggests clinical potentials in the treatment of postpartum depressive symptoms.
Unexplained intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) may be a consequence of placental insufficiency; however, its etiology is not fully understood. We surmised that defective placentation in IUGR ...dysregulates cellular bioenergic homeostasis, leading to increased autophagy in the villous trophoblast. The aims of this work were (1) to compare the differences in autophagy, p53 expression, and apoptosis between placentas of women with normal or IUGR pregnancies; (2) to study the effects of hypoxia and the role of p53 in regulating trophoblast autophagy; and (3) to investigate the relationship between autophagy and apoptosis in hypoxic trophoblasts.
Compared with normal pregnant women, women with IUGR had higher placental levels of autophagy-related proteins LC3B-II, beclin-1, and damage-regulated autophagy modulator (DRAM), with increased p53 and caspase-cleaved cytokeratin 18 (M30). Furthermore, cytotrophoblasts cultured under hypoxia (2% oxygen) in the presence or absence of nutlin-3 (a p53 activity stimulator) had higher levels of LC3B-II, DRAM, and M30 proteins and increased Bax mRNA expression compared with controls cultured under standard conditions. In contrast, administration of pifithrin-α (a p53 activity inhibitor) during hypoxia resulted in protein levels that were similar to those of the control groups. Moreover, cytotrophoblasts transfected with LC3B, beclin-1, or DRAM siRNA had higher levels of M30 compared with the controls under hypoxia. However, transfection with Bcl-2 or Bax siRNA did not cause any significant change in the levels of LC3B-II in hypoxic cytotrophoblasts.
Together, these results suggest that there is a crosstalk between autophagy and apoptosis in IUGR and that p53 plays a pivotal and complex role in regulating trophoblast cell turnover in response to hypoxic stress.
Objective
To report obstetric outcomes in pregnant women with previous pelvic ring injury (PRI) and investigate the correlation between residual pelvic deformity and the mode of delivery.
Design
...Retrospective cohort study.
Setting
Single medical centre in Taiwan.
Population
Forty‐one women with PRI histories from 2000 to 2021 who subsequently underwent pregnancy and delivery.
Methods
All patients had complete PRI treatment and radiological follow up for at least 1 year. The demographic data, radiological outcomes after PRI and obstetric outcomes were collected to investigate the potential factors of delivery modes using non‐parametric approaches and logistic regression. Caesarean section (CS) rates among different subgroups were reported.
Main outcome measures
Comparisons of demographic data and radiological outcomes (Matta/Tornetta criteria and Lefaivre criteria) after PRI among patients who had subsequent pregnancy and underwent vaginal deliveries (VD) or CS.
Results
There were 14 VD and 27 CS in 41 patients. Nine patients underwent CS because of their PRI history, 12 patients underwent CS for other obstetric indications and 20 underwent trial of labour. Based on the logistic regression model, retained trans‐iliosacral implants did not significantly increase the risk of CS (odds ratio OR 1.20; 95% CI 0.17–8.38). Higher pelvic asymmetry value by Lefaivre criteria was a potential risk factor for CS after previous PRI (OR 1.52; 95% CI 1.043–2.213).
Conclusions
VD is possible after PRI. Retained trans‐iliosacral implants do not affect the delivery outcome. Residual pelvic asymmetry after PRI by Lefaivre criteria is a potential risk factor for CS.
The copy number variation (CNV) of 15q11.2, an emerging and common condition observed during prenatal counseling, is encompassed by four highly conserved and non-imprinted genes-
,
,
, and
-which are ...reportedly related to developmental delays or general behavioral problems. We retrospectively analyzed 1337 samples from genetic amniocentesis for fetal CNV using microarray-based comparative genomic hybridization analysis between January 2014 and December 2019. 15q11.2 CNV showed a prevalence of 1.5% (21/1337). Separately, 0.7% was noted for 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 microdeletion and 0.8% for 15q11.2 microduplication. Compared to the normal array group, the 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 microdeletion group had more cases of neonatal intensive care unit transfer, an Apgar score of <7 at 1 min, and neonatal death. Additionally, the group was symptomatic with developmental delays and had more infantile deaths related to congenital heart disease (CHD). Our study makes a novel contribution to the literature by exploring the differences in the adverse perinatal outcomes and early life conditions between the 15q11.2 CNV and normal array groups. Parent-origin gender-based differences may help in the prognosis of the fetal phenotype; development levels should be followed up in the long term and echocardiography should be offered prenatally and postnatally for the prevention of a delayed diagnosis of CHD.
To evaluate the effectiveness of transvaginal ultrasound aspiration and ethanol sclerotherapy in patients with recurrent ovarian endometriomas.
Retrospective study.
Teaching hospital affiliated with ...Chang Gung University, Taipei.
Patients (n = 108) with recurrent ovarian endometriomas >or=3 cm.
Preoperative evaluation of previous pathology, midcycle serum CA-125 level, and color Doppler ultrasonography to exclude possibility of malignancies. After aspiration, sclerotherapy with 95% ethanol irrigation of the cystic cavity was performed (group 1, n = 78, 0-10 minutes of retention; group 2, n = 30, ethanol left in situ retention).
Ultrasonography was performed at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months to determine persistence and size of cysts and the number of antral follicles. Pelvic pain score was also determined at those time points.
The 1-year recurrence rate for group 2 patients was significantly lower than for group 1 patients (13.3% vs. 32.1%). Antral follicle count was increased and pain score was decreased in both groups to a similar level. No significant change in CA-125 was observed.
Ultrasound-guided sclerotherapy with 95% ethanol is an effective therapy for ovarian endometriomas. Retention of ethanol is more effective than irrigation only.
To investigate the association between maternal oxidative stress at mid-gestation and subsequent development of pregnancy complications.
A total of 503 healthy pregnant women provided their blood and ...urine samples at 24 to 26 weeks of gestation and were prospectively followed through postpartum. These samples were used to assess a variety of oxidative stress markers, including plasma total antioxidant capacity, 8-isoprostane, erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity, and urinary 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG).
Compared with women with uncomplicated pregnancies, significantly higher plasma 8-isoprostane levels were noted in women who developed preeclampsia (P = .008) and small-for-gestational age infants (P = .002), while higher urinary 8-OHdG concentrations were noted in women who subsequently had low-birth-weight neonates (<2500 g, P = .043).
Increased maternal oxidative stress at mid-gestation was associated with subsequent pregnancy complications.
Skeletal dysplasias, caused by genetic mutations, are a heterogenous group of heritable disorders affecting bone development during fetal life. Stickler syndrome, one of the skeletal dysplasias, is ...an autosomal dominant connective tissue disorder caused by abnormal collagen synthesis owing to a genetic mutation in COL2A1.
We present the case of a 38-year-old multipara woman whose first trimester screening showed a normal karyotype. However, the bilateral femur and humerus length symmetrically shortened after 20 weeks. Next-generation sequencing for mutations in potential genes leading to skeletal dysplasia detected a novel de novo mutation (c.1438G > A, p.Gly480Arg) in COL2A1, causing Stickler syndrome type 1. This pathogenic mutation might impair or destabilize the collagen structure, leading to collagen type II, IX, and XI dysfunction.
We identified a novel de novo mutation in COL2A1 related to the STL1 syndrome and delineated the extent of the skeletal dysplasia disease spectrum.
We present prenatal diagnosis of low-level mosaicism for a small supernumerary marker chromosome (sSMC) derived from chromosome 9q (9q13-q21.33) in a pregnancy with a favorable outcome, and ...cytogenetic discrepancy between cultured amniocytes and uncultured amniocytes.
A 36-year-old, primigravid woman underwent amniocentesis at 17 weeks of gestation because of advanced maternal age. Cytogenetic analysis on cultured amniocytes revealed a karyotype of 46,XY in 20/20 colonies. Simultaneous array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) on the DNA extracted from uncultured amniocytes revealed 30% mosaicism for a de novo 20.3-Mb gene dosage increase at 9q13-q21.33. Repeat amniocentesis and cordocentesis were performed at 21 weeks of gestation. Cytogenetic analysis on cord blood revealed a karyotype of 47,XY,+mar 3/46,XY 37. aCGH analysis of cord blood revealed 7.5% mosaicism for a 17.15-Mb gene dosage increase at 9q21.11-q21.33. aCGH analysis of uncultured amniocytes revealed 11.7% mosaicism for a 17.15-Mb gene dosage increase at 9q21.11-q21.33. Polymorphic DNA marker analysis excluded uniparental disomy 9. The parental karyotypes were normal. The pregnancy was carried to 37 weeks of gestation, and a 2955-g phenotypically normal male baby was delivered. At birth, the cord blood had a karyotype of 47,XY,+mar 3/46,XY 37, the placenta had a karyotype of 47,XY,+mar 10/46,XY 30, and the umbilical cord had a karyotype of 47,XY,+mar 14/46,XY 36. aCGH analysis on the DNA extracted from cord blood at birth revealed no genomic imbalance. Interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis on buccal mucosal cells at age two months detected 3.8% (4/106 cells) mosaicism for the sSMC, compared with 2% (2/100 cells) in the normal control. The neonate had normal physical development at age two months.
Cytogenetic discrepancy between cultured amniocytes and uncultured amniocytes may exist in the pregnancy with fetal mosaic sSMC. Low-level mosaicism for an sSMC derived from chromosome 9q13-q21.33 at prenatal diagnosis can be associated with a favorable outcome in the fetus.
To compare the efficacy of carbetocin and oxytocin on hemorrhage-related changes in women with cesarean deliveries (CS) for different indications.
A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 1568 ...women with CS before labor onset (elective CS, n = 1153) or during labor (intrapartum CS, n = 415) after 24 weeks’ gestation. We compared the fall in hemoglobin (Hb) and hematocrit (Hct) levels after CS, estimated blood loss, the need for additional uterotonic agents, blood transfusion, and the rate of postpartum hemorrhage between women with carbetocin and women with oxytocin treatment, stratified by indications for CS.
For women with elective CS, decreased Hb and Hct falls were noted with carbetocin treatment compared to oxytocin treatment in women with indications for prior CS, fetal malpresentation, and multiple gestation. The need for additional uterotonics was less in CS for prior CS, fetal malpresentation, and cephalopelvic disproportion and fewer transfusions in CS for multiple gestation in women with carbetocin compared to women with oxytocin treatment. For women with intrapartum CS, carbetocin was associated with decreased use of additional uterotonic agents and transfusion in CS for dysfunctional labor.
Carbetocin and oxytocin had differential effects on hemorrhage-related changes in women with CS for different indications.
Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) through the analysis of cell-free DNA in maternal plasma has bee expanded to include clinically-relevant microdeletions such as the 22q11.2 deletion syndrome ...(22q11.2DS).
We present a pregnancy where the fetus was affected with 22q11.2DS based on chromosome microarray analysis. Discordant results were obtained through two different NIPT methodologies. The pregnancy was identified as high risk by a SNP-based approach but low risk using a genome-wide counting methodology. A review of the technical methods used for these tests provides insight into why they may provide conflicting results and emphasizes the importance of chromosome microarray studies for diagnostic confirmation and defining the deletion.
Currently available NIPT for 22q11.2DS use different technologies that are not equivalent. The genome-wide counting methodology has the potential to detect deletions outside the critical 22q11.2 A–D region but current data suggests it may have a lower sensitivity for deletions within the critical region.
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