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BACKGROUND: The relationship between birth mode, with the medical care it implies, and women's subjective experiences of childbirth is known to be complex and multifactorial. Considering these complexities, this study aimed to explore the relationship between birth mode and women's childbirth experiences. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey on the most recent childbirth was distributed in three French maternity wards between September and October 2019 as part of a mixed-method research design. All women over 18 years of age who had given birth in the wards in the previous 3 days were eligible to participate. To study these qualitative variables in a finite population, 258 women were recruited by use of a simple random sampling technique. They answered survey questions concerning both sociodemographic data and information about the childbirth experience. The correlation between the survey variables was studied using a Pearson chi-square test. RESULTS: Combined data indicated a positive correlation between childbirth experiences and birth mode. Furthermore, data showed that emergency cesarean births had the most negative impact on respondents' childbirth experiences. Compared to respondents who had an emergency cesarean, those who had a non-instrumental vaginal birth used the words "happiness" (p =.0095), "wonder" (p =.0005), and "power" (p =.0384) significantly more. Additionally, compared to respondents who had a vaginal birth, those who had an emergency cesarean described their childbirth significantly more with the words "fear" (p <.0001) and "powerlessness" (p <.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Although several studies have already highlighted the relationship between birth mode and women's negative childbirth experiences, our results show that this relationship can also be read through the lesser use of positive words to describe this subjective experience, thus refining our knowledge and understanding of this event. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a survey of pneumocystosis and dihydropteroate synthase genotype (DHPS) analysis in Parisian hospitals in France in 2003 and 2004. From January 1, 2003 to December 31, 2004, 313 Pneumocystis pneumonia cases were reported, 150 in 2003 and 163 in 2004. Sixty-five percent of the patients were HIV positive, where men represented 66% of the total patients. In addition, there was evidence that the prevalence of DHPS mutations depends on geographic locations.

The head louse, Pediculus humanus capitis (De Geer), is an hematophagous ectoparasite that affects mainly children. Resistance to insecticides belonging to pyrethroids and other pediculicides, such as malathion, is responsible for frequently reported treatment failures. Recent studies showed that a M815I-T929I-L932F kdr-like mutation in the voltage-gated sodium channel alpha-subunit gene was associated with permethrin resistance in head lice from several countries worldwide. We searched for the presence ofpyrethroid resistance gene in head lice populations obtained in schoolchildren in an urban area of France. All the 15 primary schools of Bobigny, a city located 3 km north of Paris, were selected to participate. Of 3,493 children enrolled, 3,345 (95.8%) children were screened for head lice by using fine-toothed antilouse combs. Live head lice were detected in 112 (3.3%) of children screened. A subsample of 90 lice was processed for DNA study. The amplification of a 332-bp portion of the kdr-like gene spanning the codon 929 was performed, and polymerase chain reaction products were submitted to the restriction enzyme SspI. Twenty of these lice (22.2%) were homozygous susceptible, 33 (36.7%) were homozygous resistant, and 37 (41.1%) were heterozygotes. Globally, the frequency of the T929I mutation was 0.57. The prevalence of pediculosis in schoolchildren of Bobigny seemed relatively low in comparison with findings of other European studies. The presence of the T929I mutation associated with permethrin resistance probably reflected the frequent local use of this insecticide. Further studies are now required to evaluate the prevalence of the kdr-like mutant allele in head lice in French schools.