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Objectives: The purpose of this study is to establish a comprehensive reference range of quantitative characteristics of the fetal pancreas using a high-frequency transducer, and assess the growth and development of the fetal pancreas. Methods: Pregnant women referred to a tertiary center were recruited to undergo a detailed fetal scan from 16 to 37 weeks. We evaluated the visualization rate of the fetal pancreas with high-frequency and low-frequency transducers and measured the head, neck, body, tail, circumference, area, and abdominal circumference(AC) of the fetal pancreas at different gestational ages(GA) with the high-frequency transducer. Regression analysis was used to analyze the relationship between biological parameters and GA and AC. Results: During the time periods of 16+1∼21+6 weeks and 22+1∼27+6 weeks, the visualization rate of high-frequency transducers was higher compared to low-frequency transducers (83.33% vs 45% and 95.65% vs 70%, respectively). However, in the third trimester of pregnancy, the performance of the two transducers was similar (70.37% vs 74.07% for 28+1∼33+6 weeks and 41.67% vs 53.85% for 34+1∼37+6 weeks). The head, neck, body, and tail as well as the circumference and area of the pancreas were significantly positively correlated with GA (R2＝0.87, 0.94, 0.92, 0.92,0.96, and 0.92) and AC (R2＝0.87, 0.93, 0.91, 0.93,0.96, and 0.92). Conclusions: The high-frequency transducer was utilized to establish the normal reference, which can be used to evaluate normal pancreatic development and may help in the accurate diagnosis of fetal pancreatic abnormalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We investigated the association between prenatal GDM exposure and offspring DNA methylation (DNAm) age at 3–10 years of age in the Tianjin GDM Observational Study. Methods: This study included 578 GDM and 578 non-GDM mother-child pairs. Children underwent an exam with anthropometric measurements and blood draw for DNAm analysis (Illumina 850 K array) at a median age of 5.9 years (range 3.1–10.2). DNAm age was calculated using two epigenetic clock algorithms (Horvath and Hannum). The residual resulting from regressing DNAm age on chronological age was used as a metric for age acceleration. Results: Chronological age was positively correlated with Horvath DNAm age (r = 0.53, p < 0.0001) and Hannum DNAm age (r = 0.38, p < 0.0001). Offspring age acceleration was higher in the GDM group than non-GDM group after adjustment for potential confounders (Horvath: 4.96 months higher, adjusted for sex, pre-pregnancy BMI, cell-type proportions, and technical bias, p = 0.0002; Hannum: 11.2 months higher, adjusted for cell-type proportions and technical bias, p < 0.0001). Increased offspring DNAm age acceleration was associated with increased offspring weight-for-age Z-score, BMI-for-age-Z-score, waist circumference, body fat percentage, subscapular skinfold, suprailiac skinfold, upper-arm circumference, and blood pressure; findings were stronger in the GDM group. Conclusions: We found that offspring of women with GDM exhibit accelerated epigenetic age compared to control participants, independent of other maternal factors. Epigenetic age in offspring was associated with cardiometabolic risk factors, suggesting that GDM and GDM-associated factors may have long-term effects on offspring epigenetic age and contribute to health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine the relationship between neonatal thyroid function and the formal education of mothers.Study design: Participants came from a population-based congenital hypothyroidism (CH) screening program in Tianjin, China.Methods: Of 66,390 registered births in 2015, 60,568 mothers and newborns had complete data. Mothers were categorized into one of four categories based on their educational attainment: (a) midschool or less; (b) high school or equivalent; (c) university; or (d) post graduate. Newborn thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) level was measured on day 3-7. Two neonatal groups were created using cutoffs of TSH > 10 μIU/ml and TSH > 20 μIU/ml. Odds ratios (OR) for CH risk by maternal education were estimated from logistic regression models after adjusting for potential confounders.Results: For TSH > 10 μIU/ml, the screen positive incidence rate for CH was 1:201 or 4.98 per 1000 births; for TSH > 20 μIU/ml, the incidence rate was 1:2222 or 0.45 per 1000 births. Screen positive incidence rates decreased with increasing maternal education level. Compared to mothers with a postgraduate education, the ORs (95% CI) for midschool or less, high school or equivalent, and university were 2.09 (1.08, 4.04), 1.45 (0.73, 2.90), and 1.61 (0.85, 3.06) using a cutoff of TSH > 10 μIU/ml. At the higher cutoff of TSH > 20 μIU/ml ORs (95% CI) for midschool or less and high school or equivalent were 3.05 (1.20,7.74) and 3.34 (1.24, 8.97), when compared to a composite reference category of university and postgraduate level education.Conclusion: Maternal education is inversely related to neonatal thyroid function though the mechanism remains unexplained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smoking has been associated with depression in the general population. Whether passive smoking is also associated with postpartum depression (PPD) is uncertain. From 2010 to 2012, we recruited 8,842 pregnant women in Tianjin, China. The mainland Chinese version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale was used to evaluate postpartum depressive symptoms after birth, with a score of >9 defining PPD. Data were collected using specially designed questionnaires or data from the electronic database of Tianjin Maternal and Child Health Information System. Odds ratios (OR) and 95 percent confidence intervals (CI) were obtained for the association of smoking status with PPD using binary logistic regression. Passive smoke exposure rates before and during pregnancy were 40.9 percent and 52.1 percent, respectively. A total of 8.5% (n = 747) of participants had PPD. Compared with those not exposed, women passively exposed to smoke before and during pregnancy had higher odds of PPD (before pregnancy: OR: 1.24, 95 percent CI: 1.03-1.50; during pregnancy: OR: 1.43, 95 percent CI: 1.16-1.77) after adjustment for confounding factors. Passive smoking before and during pregnancy were associated with PPD in Chinese women. Reducing passive smoke exposure may reduce PPD in Chinese women; further longitudinal studies are warranted to replicate these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postpartum depression is associated with adverse consequences for mother and offspring. The heritable ABO blood group has been associated with multiple diseases, including mental illness and diabetes. We explored the association of ABO blood group and postpartum depressive symptoms (PPDS) in a population-based cohort of pregnant Chinese women. From 2010 to August 2012, we recruited 8842 pregnant women with a mean age of 28.5 years (SD: 2.94) and mean body mass index of 22.4kg/m2 (SD: 3.45) in Tianjin, China. We used the Mainland Chinese version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale after delivery with a cutoff score of 10 to define PPDS. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for PPDS were obtained using binary logistic regression. Of 8842 women, 8.5% (n = 747) developed PPDS. Compared to those with blood group B, women with blood groups A, AB or O had a higher odds of PPDS (adjusted ORs: 1.23 (95% CI: 1.13-1.40), 1.31 (95% CI: 0.98-1.74), and 1.30(95% CI:1.03-1.60), respectively). Blood group B was associated with reduced odds of PPDS in pregnant Chinese women. If replicated in other studies, non-blood group B may be a useful risk factors for PPDS in Chinese pregnant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]