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Objective The maternal bone structure is the largest calcium reserve for the fetus during pregnancy, and this is claimed to lead to a bone mineral density (BMD) reduction in pregnant women. The primary outcome of the present work was to assess the BMD in a group of healthy pregnant women. Study design In this prospective case – control observational study, a non-consecutive group of pregnant women with uncomplicated pregnancy at or >37 weeks were enrolled at the unit of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Parma, from February to December 2020. The study subjects were submitted to a sonographic examination of the proximal femur with Radiofrequency Echographic Multi Spectrometry (REMS) technology to quantify the BMD of the femur. The BMD values obtained in the study group were compared with those of a control group of non-pregnant women matched for age, ethnicity and pre-pregnant body mass index (BMI). Results Overall, 78 pregnant women at 39.1 ± 1.5 weeks were assessed. Compared with non-pregnant women, the femoral BMD values measured in pregnancy using REMS were significant lower (0.769 ± 0.094 g/cm2 vs 0.831 ± 0.101 g/cm2, p = 0.0001) with a mean BMD reduction of 8.1%. The femoral neck BMD presented a positive correlation with the pre-pregnant BMI (p = 0.0004) and a negative correlation with the maternal age (p Conclusion In this exploratory and proof of concept study, for the first time, a decreased BMD has been objectively demonstrated in pregnant compared with non-pregnant women by means of REMS technology. New studies are required to assess the longitudinal changes of maternal bone density throughout the pregnancy.

The timing of delivery for women affected by gestational diabetes (GDM) is still controversial. Good clinical practice often suggests offering induction of labor at term in order to reduce the complications associated with this condition, while recent evidence supports expectant management. Fetal Doppler parameters represent a validated tool for testing fetal well-being at term and can select pregnancies that need increased surveillance. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the role of fetal Doppler parameters at term for the prediction of pregnancy outcomes in patients affected by GDM. Prospective cohort study in a single center. Evaluation of umbilical artery (UA) PI, middle cerebral artery (MCA) PI, cerebroplacental ratio (CPR) and umbilical-to-cerebral ratio (UCR) at 37 weeks of gestation in singleton, morphologically normal pregnancies affected by GDM, was performed in order to estimate the association between ultrasound measurements at term and perinatal outcome. Regression linear analysis was used to estimate the association between fetal Doppler parameters and neonatal pH, neonatal Apgar score, neonatal weight and a composite adverse outcome. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to estimate the possible predictive value of the above association. Our results on 130 women showed MCA PI to be the best predictor of perinatal outcomes in terms of low Apgar score at the 1st minute (p = 0.00), pH (p = 0.02) and composite adverse outcome (p = 0.05). UCR showed a significant correlation with neonatal pH (p = 0.02). No significant correlations for UA PI and CPR MoMs have been demonstrated in our population. However, the small sample size is a limitation of the study. Evaluation of MCA Doppler and eventually UCR at term can be a useful tool to discriminate pregnancies affected by GDM that can benefit from IOL before 41 weeks in order to reduce complications related to this condition.ZIEL: Bei Frauen mit Gestationsdiabetes (GDM) ist die Terminierung der Entbindung nach wie vor umstritten. Gemäß der guten klinischen Praxis wird zur Verringerung der mit dieser Erkrankung einhergehenden Komplikationen empfohlen, die Wehen-Einleitung zum Geburtstermin anzubieten, während jüngste Beweise für „Beobachten und Abwarten“ sprechen. Fetale Doppler-Parameter sind eine validierte Methode, um das fetale Wohlergehen am Geburtstermin zu untersuchen und kann diejenigen Schwangerschaften identifizieren, bei denen eine engere Überwachung nötig ist. Das Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war die Bewertung der Rolle fetaler Doppler-Parameter am Geburtstermin für die Vorhersage des Schwangerschaftsausgangs bei Patienten mit GDM. Prospektive Kohortenstudie in einem einzigen Zentrum. Die Bewertung von PI der Nabelschnurarterie (UA), PI der A. cerebri media (MCA), der cerebroplacental ratio (CPR) und der umbilical-to-cerebral-ratio (UCR) wurde bei morphologisch normalen Einlings-Schwangerschaften 37 Schwangerschaftswochen mit GDM durchgeführt, um eine Assoziation zwischen Ultraschallmessungen am Geburtstermin und dem perinatalen Outcome abzuschätzen. Die lineare Regressionsanalyse wurde verwendet, um den Zusammenhang zwischen den fetalen Doppler-Parametern und dem pH-Wert, Apgar-Score, Gewicht und dem kombinierten schlechten Outcome des Neugeborenen zu untersuchen. Die Receiver-Operating-Characteristic (ROC) -Kurve wurde zur Abschätzung des möglichen Vorhersagewertes der obigen Assoziation verwendet. Unsere Ergebnisse bei 130 Frauen zeigten, dass MCA-PI der beste Prädiktor für das perinatale Outcome ist in Bezug auf einen niedrigen Apgar-Score in der 1. Minute (p = 0,00), pH-Wert (p = 0,02) und den kombinierten schlechten Outcome (p = 0,05). Die UCR zeigte eine signifikante Korrelation mit dem neonatalen pH-Wert (p = 0,02). In unserer Population wurden keine signifikanten Korrelationen für UA und CPR-MoMs nachgewiesen. Die geringe Stichprobengröße ist jedoch eine Einschränkung der Studie. Die Bewertung von MCA-Doppler und letztlich UCR am Geburtstermin können nützliche Methoden sein, um Schwangerschaften mit GDM zu unterscheiden, die von einer IOL vor der 41. Woche profitieren könnten, um die mit dieser Erkrankung einhergehenden Komplikationen zu reduzieren.

BACKGROUND Intrauterine growth curves are considered an essential instrument in prenatal medicine for an appropriate auxological classification of fetuses and they have a great importance in clinical practice. Nowadays, in Italy a national curve published in 1975, is the most used. It Is based on birth weights of 8458 newborns from physiological pregnancies. The aim of the present study was to develop a modern fetal growth curve based on accurately selection of 35 240 physiological singleton Italian pregnancies with sure gestational age confirmed by ultrasound. METHODS This is a retrospective analysis of 35,240 pregnancies from "A. Gemelli" University Hospital in Rome and "S. Anna" University Hospital in Turin from January 2001 to December 2006. Non-resident pregnant women or coming from other countries, women with diabetes, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, multiple pregnancies, fetuses with major malformations and/or chromosomal disorders and stillborn fetuses were excluded. RESULTS An increasing trend of median neonatal weight, in comparison with the previous Italian National Curve drawn up in 1975, was found. CONCLUSIONS Combining data from two centers, a new fetal growth curve, in which the 10th and the 90th percentiles are clinically reliable, was performed, in order to have a better tool to evaluate the Italian fetal population. A trend towards an increase of birth weight was observed if compared to previous growth curve drawn up more than 30 years ago.

Aim Massive post-partum hemorrhage (PPH) is an important cause of maternal death that occurs as a complication of delivery. We report a large case series to evaluate the efficacy of uterine balloon tamponade to treat PPH avoiding hysterectomy. Material and Methods This prospective study was conducted in two Italian hospitals (from December 2002 to July 2012). Fifty-two patients with PPH not responsive to uterotonics were treated by Rusch balloon. A follow-up was conducted among the study population to assess the subsequent fertility. Results The most frequent cause of PPH was atony (59.6%), followed by placenta previa (21.2%), placenta accreta (9.6%), and placenta previa and accreta (9.6%). The balloon success rate to control hemorrhage was 75%. From the sample of 52 patients, 13 patients needed additional procedures. In three failure cases, other conservative techniques were used and the overall effectiveness of them was 80.7%. The follow-up group consisted of 31 women. Of these women, 24 women (77.4%) had no further pregnancies, but only one due to sterility. Four of seven patients with subsequent pregnancies made it to term without complications. Conclusions The Rusch balloon is effective in controlling non-traumatic PPH in 75% of cases. It is simple to use, readily available and cheap. If necessary, this technique does not exclude other procedures. We suggest that this balloon should be included routinely in the PPH protocol.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are commonly associated with impaired foetal growth. However, some studies observed that gestational hypertension in twin pregnancy could be beneficial for foetal growth. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of gestational hypertension on neonatal birth weight among twin pregnancies.This is a retrospective study about the comparison of 196 hypertensive twin pregnancies to 912 normotensive ones, who gave birth in the teaching hospital "A. Gemelli" in Rome from 1980 to 2006.Birth weight, inter-twin weight discordance and rate of small for gestational age neonates in the first and second twin.Birth weight, inter-twin weight discordance and rate of small for gestational age neonates were similar between the two groups. In the normotensive group, the discordance25% was associated with lower gestational age at the delivery (p0.00001), data not observed in the hypertensive group. The rate of pregnancies with second twin small for gestational age rose while paralleling the degree of the discordance in both groups.Gestational hypertension in twin pregnancies, if compared to normotensive ones, is not detrimental for foetal growth.

Cancer is the leading cause of death in women of reproductive age. During the last decades and especially in developed countries, the incidence of cancer is increasing dramatically, with an incidence of 1 in 1,000 pregnancies. This is mostly related to delay of pregnancy into the late reproductive years. The aim of this study was to investigate the outcome of pregnancy in women with diagnosis of cancer; in particular, neonatal morbidity and mortality, after in utero exposure to chemotherapy, were evaluated. A total of 59 singletons and one twin pregnancy complicated by cancer were followed at our tertiary centre over the last 15 years. A different treatment, based on surgery and/or chemotherapy in pregnancy or delayed to the postpartum period, was employed. There were 59 live births (97%), one foetal loss and one stillbirth at 28 weeks. The congenital malformation rate was 5% (n = 3). The rate of preterm birth was 83%. The mean birthweight and mean birthweight percentile were 2,098 g (740-3930) and 46 (7-93), respectively; 32% of neonates were small for gestational age (SGA). Dividing the population into treated or untreated with chemotherapy, the rate of SGA was not statistically significant different between the two groups. Our results showed that chemotherapy administered during the second trimester or later did not influence intrauterine foetal growth, but the high prevalence of SGA neonates in the two groups, exposed or not exposed to chemotherapy, suggests an influence of maternal cancer per se on foetal growth.

Objective: The presence of TORCH IgM positivity is not a specific indicator of primary infection; the assessment of IgG avidity index has been shown to be useful in identifying or excluding primary infection in pregnant women with no pre-gestational TORCH serology. TORCH is an acronym for Toxoplasmosis, Others (HBV, syphilis, Varicella–Zoster virus, Epstein Barr virus, Coxsackie virus and Parvovirus), Rubella, Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Herpes Simplex. Patients and methods: Data from 54 pregnancies in women with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) were assessed in comparison with data from 222 healthy pregnant women as controls. Each woman in both groups was systematically screened for TORCH IgG and IgM during pre-conceptional evaluation and/or at the beginning of pregnancy. The assessment of IgG avidity was also evaluated in order to identify primary infection or false positivity. Results: A significant increase of CMV IgM false positivity in APS in comparison with controls was detected. A worse pregnancy outcome was observed among APS patients having CMV IgM false positivity in comparison with APS patients without false positivity; in particular a statistically significant lower neonatal birth weight and a lower neonatal birth weight percentile were observed. Conclusion: Our data suggest that the presence of CMV IgM false positivity could represent a novel prognostic factor for poor pregnancy outcome in APS patients. Lupus (2012) 21, 773–775.