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As the obesity pandemic continues in the United States, obesity in pregnancy has become an area of interest. Many studies focus on women with body mass index (BMI) ⩾30 kg m−2. Unfortunately, the prevalence of patients with BMI ⩾50 kg m−2 is rapidly increasing, and there are few studies specifically looking at pregnant women in this extreme category. The purpose of this article is to highlight some of the challenges faced and review the literature available to help guide obstetricians who might encounter such patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:This prospective observational study explored the association of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and small-for-gestational age with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as determined by screening measures for OSA and sleep studies.Study Design:Two symptom-based screening questionnaires, the Berlin Questionnaire (BQ) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), were administered to enroll 1509 gravidae. Screen-positive subjects were referred for polysomnography. The primary outcome was the occurrence of either gestational hypertension or preeclampsia. Generalized linear models (GLM) were used to estimate the relative risks of associations.Result:One thousand one hundred and fifty-seven subjects were available for outcomes analysis. Screening positive on the BQ was positively associated with hypertensive disorders in GLM models (adjusted relative risk=1.90, 95% confidence interval 1.52 to 2.37).Conclusion:In this large prospective trial, GLM modeling suggests that the BQ but not the ESS demonstrated significant association with measured adverse pregnancy outcomes, and specific items predicted these outcomes better than others. However, causative association of BQ with OSA cannot be assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:To examine whether inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is associated with ischemic/inflammatory conditions during pregnancy.Study Design:A retrospective cohort study using the 2000 to 2012 Kaiser Permanente Southern California maternally-linked medical records (n=395 781). The two major subtypes of IBD, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's diseases were studied. Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were used to quantify the associations.Result:A pregnancy complicated by IBD was associated with increased incidence of small-for-gestational age birth (OR=1.46, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.14 to 1.88), spontaneous preterm birth (OR=1.32, 95% CI=1.00 to 1.76) and preterm premature rupture of membranes (OR=1.95, 95% CI=1.26 to 3.02). Further stratifying by IBD subtypes, only ulcerative colitis was significantly associated with increased incidence of ischemic placental disease, spontaneous preterm birth and preterm premature rupture of membranes.Conclusion:The findings underscore the potential impact of maternal IBD on adverse perinatal outcomes. Clinicians should be aware that the association between IBD and adverse perinatal outcome varies by IBD subtypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:To evaluate the International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups (IADPSG) criteria versus the American Diabetes Association (ADA) criteria for diagnosing gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in China.Study Design:Overall, 3083 women with a singleton pregnancy underwent a 75-g, 2-h oral glucose tolerance test between 24 and 28 weeks of pregnancy, and both IADPSG and ADA criteria were used for GDM diagnosis. Adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs), including preterm birth, required Cesarean section, preeclampsia, macrosomia and low birth weight, were recorded and analyzed.Result:IADPSG and ADA criteria diagnosed 19.9% and 7.98% of women with GDM, respectively (P<0.001). IADPSG criteria has a stronger capacity of predicting APOs than ADA criteria (odds ratio (OR)=1.84, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.52-2.25 for IADPSG, and OR=1.54, 95% CI: 1.16-2.05 for ADA).Conclusion:IADPSG criteria increase GDM diagnosis by almost twofold. GDM diagnosed by IADPSG criteria is more associated with APOs, although the economic impact needs further evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to draw together recent thinking on pregnancy and acute pancreatitis (AP), with a particular emphasis on pregnancy complications, birth outcomes and management of AP during pregnancy contingent on the etiology. AP during pregnancy is a rare but severe disease with a high maternal-fetal mortality, which has recently decreased thanks to earlier diagnosis and some maternal and neonatal intensive care improvement. AP usually occurs during the third trimester or the early postpartum period. The most common causes of AP are gallstones (65 to 100%), alcohol abuse and hypertriglyceridemia. Although the diagnostic criteria for AP are not specific for pregnant patients, Ranson and Balthazar criteria are used to evaluate the severity and treat AP during pregnancy. The fetal risks from AP during pregnancy are threatened preterm labor, prematurity and in utero fetal death. In cases of acute biliary pancreatitis during pregnancy, a consensual strategy could be adopted according to the gestational age, and taking in consideration the high risk of recurrence of AP (70%) with conservative treatment and the specific risks of each treatment. This could include: conservative treatment in first trimester and laparoscopic cholecystectomy in second trimester. During the third trimester, conservative treatment or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography with biliary endoscopic sphincterotomy, and laparoscopic cholecystectomy in early postpartum period are recommended. A multidisciplinary approach, including gastroenterologists and obstetricians, seems to be the key in making the best choice for the management of AP during pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE:To examine the Institute of Medicine (IOM) guidelines for gestational weight gain (GWG) in insulin-resistant pregnancy.STUDY DESIGN:Secondary analysis of a prospective cohort of 435 women with type 2 or gestational diabetes from 2006 to 2010. The exposure was categorized as GWG less than, within or greater than the IOM recommendations for body mass index. The maternal outcome was a composite of preeclampsia, eclampsia, third- to fourth-degree laceration, readmission or wound infection. The neonatal outcome was a composite of preterm delivery, level 3 nursery admission, oxygen requirement >6 h, shoulder dystocia, 5-min Apgar3, umbilical cord arterial pH<7.1 or base excess <−12. Secondary outcomes were cesarean delivery (CD), macrosomia and small for gestational age (SGA).RESULT:Incidence of the maternal outcome did not differ with GWG (P=0.15). Women gaining more than recommended had an increased risk of CD (relative risk (RR) 1.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01 to 1.69) and the neonatal outcome (RR 1.40, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.95) compared with women gaining within the IOM recommendations. Women gaining less than recommended had an increased risk of SGA (RR 3.29, 95% CI 1.09 to 9.91) without a decrease in the risk of the maternal outcome (RR 0.93, 95% CI 0.49 to 1.78) or CD (RR 0.74, 95% CI 0.40 to 1.37) compared with women gaining within the IOM recommendations.CONCLUSION:Women with insulin resistance should be advised to gain within the current IOM guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to review and summarize available evidence regarding the impact of amphetamines on pregnancy, the newborn infant and the child. Amphetamines are neurostimulants and neurotoxins that are some of the most widely abused illicit drugs in the world. Users are at high risk of psychiatric co-morbidities, and evidence suggests that perinatal amphetamine exposure is associated with poor pregnancy outcomes, but data is confounded by other adverse factors associated with drug-dependency. Data sources are Government data, published articles, conference abstracts and book chapters. The global incidence of perinatal amphetamine exposure is most likely severely underestimated but acknowledged to be increasing rapidly, whereas exposure to other drugs, for example, heroin, is decreasing. Mothers known to be using amphetamines are at high risk of psychiatric co-morbidity and poorer obstetric outcomes, but their infants may escape detection, because the signs of withdrawal are usually less pronounced than opiate-exposed infants. There is little evidence of amphetamine-induced neurotoxicity and long-term neurodevelopmental impact, as data is scarce and difficult to extricate from the influence of other factors associated with children living in households where one or more parent uses drugs in terms of poverty and neglect. Perinatal amphetamine-exposure is an increasing worldwide concern, but robust research, especially for childhood outcomes, remains scarce. We suggest that exposed children may be at risk of ongoing developmental and behavioral impediment, and recommend that efforts be made to improve early detection of perinatal exposure and to increase provision of early-intervention services for affected children and their families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:The objective of this study was to demonstrate the increasing importance of heart disease as a cause of pregnancy-related mortality in Hawaii and the rest of the United States.Study Design:Hawaii's Department of Public Health identified all pregnancy-associated death certificates from 1991 to 2007. Hospital records and autopsy reports were reviewed to determine whether deaths were pregnancy-related.Result:From 1991 to 2007, Hawaii registered 156 deaths occurring within 1 year of pregnancy, which represented 4.2% of the total number of women who died in the same 17 to 46 years age group and 9.0% of the total number of women who died in the same 17 to 34 years age group. The pregnancy-related mortality ratio was 22.4 and the pregnancy-associated mortality ratio was 50. The leading cause of pregnancy-associated mortality was heart disease (20.5%) followed by cancer (18.6%) and suicide/homicide (12.2%). Pregnancy-related deaths (n=70) were attributed to heart disease (45.7%) followed by sepsis (14.2%) and hemorrhage (12.9%). The new Hawaii death certificate beginning in 2006 increased the detection of both pregnancy-related and -associated deaths.Conclusion:Heart disease is the most common cause of pregnancy-related mortality in Hawaii, and with improved ascertainment, may be determined to be the most common cause of pregnancy-related mortality in the rest of the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:This pilot study evaluated the potential benefits of pet therapy on symptoms of anxiety and depression in antepartum hospitalized women with high-risk pregnancies.Study design:Eighty-two women in a hospital-based setting completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Beck Depression Inventory before and after the pet therapy visit. For both questionnaires, paired t-test was used and adjusted P-values were obtained using the Hochberg step-up Bonferroni method.Result:The mean scores for depressive symptoms significantly improved from the pre-pet therapy (10.1±6.3) compared with the post-pet therapy (6.3±5.9) (P<0.0001). Likewise mean scores of the state anxiety significantly improved from the pre-pet therapy test (44.8±11.7) compared with the post-pet therapy (34.5±10.5) (P<0.001).Conclusion:Pet therapy significantly reduced anxiety and depression in antepartum hospitalized women with high-risk pregnancies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses pregnancy of women having diabetes and focuses on the risk for maternal and neonatal complications. An overview of factors related to short term complications such as preeclampsia and fetal hypoglycemia and longterm complications such as fetal macrosomia is mentioned. He refers to the hypothesis of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Barker. He focuses on gestational weight gain and mentions association of confounding factors and risk of weight gain above Institute of Medicine (IOM).