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Understanding the hemoglobin switching regulation mechanism in extremely premature infants is particularly important for understanding the extrauterine adaptation of the infants. In this study, we sought to identify factors influencing oxygen affinity in fetal blood and neonatal blood and obtained these results. (1) Aging is required for hemoglobin switching. (2) Switching in premature infants (27 to 32 weeks) is delayed at least 3 weeks in comparison with full-term infants. (3) A delay in the switching of fetal hemoglobin to adult hemoglobin was confirmed in IUGR (intrauterine growth retardation) infants. However, there is a compensatory increase in 2, 3-DPG for adaptation after birth. (4) A delay in 2, 3-DPG increase was observed in RDS (respiratory distress syndrome) infants, and oxygen affinity remained high.

Objective We report a case of combined intra-abdominal and intra-uterine pregnancy from spontaneous conception, diagnosed and treated with laparoscopy in the first trimester. A revision of Studdiford criteria for diagnosis of an intra-abdominal pregnancy in heterotopic pregnancy is proposed for laparoscopic procedures. Case A 20-year-old woman conceived spontaneously and experienced an episode of abdominal pain at 5 weeks of gestation. Combined intra-abdominal and intra-uterine pregnancies were diagnosed and the intra-abdominal pregnancy was treated using a laparoscopic technique, in the first trimester. There were good fetal and maternal outcomes. Conclusion Less invasive diagnostic and therapeutic management of intra-abdominal pregnancy in early pregnancy should be employed to save the intra-uterine gestation of the heterotopic pregnancy. We propose modified Studdiford criteria for probable and definite laparoscopic diagnosis of primary abdominal pregnancy.

In this study, the changes in skin blood flow and skin temperature for healthy subjects and the difference in the distribution of the rhythms of skin temperature between healthy subjects and patients with Raynaud's syndrome were analyzed using laser Doppler flow meters, thermocouples and a thermographic system (thermal rhythmography) which is capable of displaying topograms of the power spectra of an arbitrary frequency range with respect to changes in skin temperature. The results showed that the periodic fluctuations of skin temperature may provide a useful index for autonomic nervous conditions, and thermal rhythmography could become a useful tool for the evaluation of autonomic dysfunction or for the preventive diagnosis of neuro-vascular diseases such as Raynaud's syndrome.