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Copyright of Ege Journal of Medicine is the property of Ege University, Faculty of Medicine and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background/Aim: Not only because of the deterioration of the general condition of pregnant women, but also considering the extra burden of long hospitalizations, in patients with hyperemesis alternative treatments become even more important. The aim of this study was to determine whether medical hypnosis is an effective and tolerated treatment for nausea and vomiting of pregnancy thus can be a good alternative to medical therapy for pregnant women with severe hyperemesis that would require hospitalization. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted with 40 pregnant women who were hospitalized for hyperemesis gravidarum between 6-20 weeks of pregnancy. The PUQE test was performed in a face-toface interview to determine nausea and vomiting severity. All patients were given the same medical treatment and hypnosis was performed with alternate patients after stabilization, by the same trained hypnotist. After the day of hypnosis all patients were again given the PUQE test. The groups were compared according to PUQE test results, the length of hospital stay and the time of first enteral feeding. Results: The groups were similar in terms of socio-demographic characteristics. The median PUQE scores were lower and the median hospitalization time was significantly shorter in the hypnosis group (P<0.001; P=0.010). The hypnosis group switched to oral nutrition earlier than the control group and this was statistically significant (P=0.034). Conclusion: Hypnotherapy should be regarded as the treatment of choice in hyperemesis gravidarum, not only by increasing women's emotional well-being during pregnancy but also reducing unnecessary and prolonged hospitalizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare the relationship between the severity of anemia and depressive mood in the last trimester of pregnancy.Methods: A cross-sectional study, enrolled a total of 450 pregnant women who attended the antenatal clinics in their third trimester for their routine antenatal follow-up. Depressive symptoms were assessed by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. The study group was divided into two groups according to presence of anemia; anemic group (Hb < 11 gr/L; n = 150) and non-anemic group (Hb ≥ 11 gr/L; n = 300) and depression scores were compared.Results: One hundred and fourteen (25.3%) women scored ≥13 points which were considered the cutoff value for depression on the EPDS. Anemia frequency was found as 33.3%. The total EPDS score was significantly higher in the anemic group (EPDS score 11 [min-max 0-29]) compared with the non-anemic group (EPDS score 7 [min-max 0-21]) (p = 0.000). Multiple regression analysis also revealed that serum Hb level was an independent factor for antenatal depressive mood.Conclusions: As anemia is associated with higher depressive symptom levels, it should be carefully considered during pregnancy. Prospective studies are needed to confirm our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim Behçet's disease (BD) is a rare and multisystemic vasculitis disease. In this study, we investigated whether BD had any effect on the biochemical components of first and second trimester aneuploidy screening tests. Methods A case-control retrospective study was conducted with 32 pregnant women with BD and 60 healthy pregnant women as controls. All pregnant womens' first trimester maternal serum pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A, free β-human chorionic gonadotropin and second trimester serum alpha-fetoprotein, unconjugated estriol and total human chorionic gonadotropin levels were examined from medical records. First and second serum screening markers were compared between pregnancies with BD and without. Results There was no difference in age, body mass index and obstetric history between the groups. No significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of first and second trimester serum screening test results in the absence of aneuploidy or neural tube defect. Gestational age at birth, birth weight and neonatal intensive care admission rate were also similar between the groups. Conclusion Both first and second serum screening tests for Down syndrome may be recommended to pregnant women with BD without the need to readjust these markers. Pregnancy with BD was not associated with adverse perinatal outcome with respect to gestational age at birth or birth weight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, mental problems have become an important health issue, the most frequent of which in pregnancy is depression. Gestational depression is known to increase gestational complications and negatively affect maternal and fetal health. The frequency of gestational depression and depressive symptoms are 10-30%. Risk factors vary according to genetic, psychologic, environmental, social, and biologic factors. Maternal morbidity and mortality rates increase in pregnant women who do not receive treatment, obstetric complications and negative fetal consequences are seen, and the incidence of postpartum depression increases. Due to all these important consequences, healthcare providers who manage pregnant women should be informed about the frequency, symptoms, and screening methods of postpartum depression, the significance of the consequences of undiagnosed and untreated depression on the health of mother and baby, and the importance of early diagnosis. Pregnant women who are at risk should be screened and detected, and directed to related centers. In this review, we briefly review the definition of gestational depression, its frequency, risk factors, complications, screening, treatments, and the procedures that need to be performed the diagnostic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Preeclampsia is a serious disease and a leading cause of maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. Red blood cell distribution width (RDW), a measure of anisocytosis, is used as an inflammation marker in hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. Although the relationship between RDW and hypertension has been well documented, the association between preeclampsia and RDW is not clear. We aimed to investigate the relationship between RDW and preeclampsia and its severity.Materials and Methods: One hundred eighteen pregnant women with preeclampsia and one hundred twenty uncomplicated pregnant women were included in the study. Blood samples for routine CBC and RDW levels were analyzed.Results: The RDW values were significantly higher in preeclampsia group compared with the control group (15.23±1.96 vs 14.48±1.70, p<0.05). We also confirmed that RDW levels were significantly higher in severe preeclampsia group than mild preeclampsia group in subgroup analyses (15.08±2.07, 15.92±1.99, p<0.05).Conclusion: Our study showed that there is an association between RDW and preeclampsia and also its severity. RDW, a marker which is easy, inexpensive and calculated as a part of blood cell count, can be used as a significant diagnostic and prognostic marker in patient with preeclampsia like the other cardiovascular diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]