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Obstetrics
Autism risk may rise with in-utero anti-seizure meds – US study
A study by American researchers suggests that the incidence of autism spectrum disorder is higher among children exposed to topiramate in the second half...
Plunging global fertility rates will lead to big world divide
Fertility rates in nearly all countries will be too low to sustain population levels by the end of the century, and most of the...
SA's maternal mortality rate declines, health barometer shows
The Western Cape is the only province that meets the UN Sustainable Development Goal target of reducing maternal mortality to below 70 maternal deaths...
Are pregnant women taking too many supplements?
Antenatal care providers should reconsider widespread prescriptions for pregnancy supplements, and promote whole food diets in pregnancy instead, write Linda Gallo and Shelley Wilkinson...
Covid-19’s tragic impact on maternal care in SA
In 2021, pregnant South African women died at a rate not seen for almost a decade, shows a new government report that exposes the...
How Kenyan midwives help prevent postpartum haemorrhaging
Every year, about 14m women lose so much blood during childbirth that they could die: about 70 000 do.
The condition – postpartum haemorrhage (PPH)...
New look at why placenta may not separate at birth – UCLA study
Research by a team from the University of California might change how clinicians and scientists understand, diagnose and treat placenta accreta spectrum disorder, a...
Benzodiazepine in pregnancy tied to miscarriage risk – Taiwan study
A nationwide study in Taiwan found that benzodiazepine use during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of miscarriage – for both long-acting and...
Low rate of Down’s syndrome screening in SA , say experts
South African researchers have suggested that the rate of prenatal screening for trisomy 21 (the chromosomal defect that leads to the condition Down’s syndrome)...
Two-minute delay in cord clamping helps preterm babies' survival rates, experts find
Recent research shows that if doctors wait at least two minutes after a baby’s birth to clamp the umbilical cord, they significantly improve in-hospital...
UK women undergo simultaneous Caesarean and cancer surgery
In a documented first, four women giving birth by Caesarean section at a London hospital had surgery – at the same time – to...
Excessive pregnancy kilos linked to earlier deaths – US study
Researchers, who analysed more than 50 years of pregnancy and mortality data, found that excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) was linked to increased risk...
Placenta-eating trend takes off with gummies and smoothies
American Allie Landis makes a living dehydrating placentas for new mothers to eat. As founder of Lancaster Placenta Company, a lab in her Pennsylvania...
Smoking in pregnancy triples risk of prem babies – UK study
Smoking during pregnancy is twice as bad as previously thought, with a threefold risk of premature birth and with babies born to these mothers...
Gynaes ‘play it safe’ as medico-legal claims rise
Each time Dr Franelise Hofmeyr has a consultation with a patient at Cape Town’s Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital she doesn’t simply jot down...
Bara stillbirth rate 17 times the national average – Wits study
Neonatal deaths at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital were as much as 12 times the national average, while the stillbirth rate among mothers whose pregnancy...
Little benefit from magnesium for preterm birth CP risk – NZ study
Researchers suggest there is little benefit in using intravenous magnesium sulphate preterm birth – at 30 to 34 weeks’ gestation – after their randomised...
Call for more action as one premature baby born every two seconds globally
Preterm birth has long been a huge, worldwide health issue, which can have serious health consequences – like respiratory and cardiac problems, among others...
Malawi study explores injectable versus oral iron for anaemia in pregnancy
Numerous meta-analyses show possible greater haematological benefit of intravenous (or injectable) iron compared with oral iron, which is the more common therapy for treatment...
US approves blood test to predict pre-eclampsia in pregnancy
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a blood test that can identify pregnant women who are at imminent risk of developing...
Tokophobia levels rise, linked to early births – US study
Preterm births have, for the first time, been linked to tokophobia – a pathological fear of childbirth – with an online survey finding that...
Recall of foetal scalp electrodes poses risks, warn experts
A global shortage of foetal scalp electrodes could reduce access to internal heart rate monitoring, potentially leading to more perinatal deaths and other complications,...
Foetal growth stunted by cannabis in pregnancy – US study
As more people use cannabis for recreational purposes, with research showing some dispensaries even recommend it to pregnant women to ease pregnancy symptoms, especially...
World-first brain surgery on foetus corrects abnormal blood vessel
For the first time, surgery has corrected an abnormal blood vessel in the brain of a foetus. The baby – who has a rare...
African study finds solution to reduce for childbirth-related haemorrhaging
A novel approach – known as E-motive – may help reduce mortality caused by childbirth-related bleeding, according to results of a study carried out...
Under-diagnosis of ectopic pregnancies is killing women – UK expert
Women are dying or suffering avoidable harm because of a failure to recognise ectopic pregnancy, says a leading British maternal health expert, who has...
NHS suggests alternative to epidural for labour
Women in labour should be offered an alternative to an epidural spinal block injection, say new draft guidelines for the NHS, which recommend an option...
Scientists identify Caesarean scar disorder
An international study led by Dutch researchers has identified, for the first time, a condition caused by an abnormal uterine scar, the findings revealing...
Air pollution hot spots link to congenital birth anomaly – SAMRC study
Pregnant women living in air pollution hot spots risk bearing a child with a congenital birth anomaly – specifically orofacial cleft lip and palate...
No milestone gaps between IVF-conceived children and their peers, large study finds
In vitro fertilisation has been around long enough that researchers can now compare developmental and academic achievements between these children and their peers at...
Type of cervix-closure sutures not a factor in miscarriage – UK trial
For pregnant women who have their cervix stitched closed to reduce miscarriage risk, rates of pregnancy loss do not differ after receiving either of...
Large global study finds air pollution link to 1m annual stillbirths
A global study has revealed that air pollution is responsible for almost 1m stillbirths every year, the research estimating that nearly half might be...
Pregnancy soon after miscarriage not any riskier – Norwegian study
Although the World Health Organisation recommends at least a six-month gap after a miscarriage/abortion before falling pregnant, researchers say there does not appear to...
MRI technique spots placental problems in foetuses in early weeks – US study
A new MRI imaging technique to assess placenta health in developing foetuses in early pregnancy has been developed that can reliably predict development complications...
Effect on infants from mothers' multiple substance use in pregnancy – SA study
Substance use during pregnancy is on the increase worldwide and is a significant public health concern, particularly in South Africa, where use of multiple...
Frozen eggs more efficient than IVF for older women – US study
The largest US report of elective fertility preservation outcomes to date found that 70% of women who froze eggs before they were 38 –...
Infertility treatments raise risk of vascular and pregnancy complications
Women opting for fertility treatment have a higher risk of vascular and pregnancy-related complications, especially if they are 35 or older, a UK study...
Prenatal DNA testing is booming. Many tests are wrong 90% of the time
Noninvasive prenatal tests (NIPTs) are being sold aggressively to would-be parents as an early warning of chromosomal abnormalities, permitting a choice between preparing to...
A 60 second delay in cord-clamping cuts relative mortality by 30%
Clamping the umbilical cord at least 60 seconds after birth reduced the risk of death or major disability at 2 years by 17%, reflecting...
Endometrial scratching treatment continues despite little proof of fertility benefit
Although there has been a substantial decline fertility experts offering the intrusive IVF treatment process of endometrial scratching, a third of them are still...