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Vitamin D Deficiency in Pregnancy Linked to Low Birth Weight
Vitamin D levels in early pregnancy are closely related to birth weight, head circumference and ponderal index, but not placental growth, in term infants, according to a study published online November 16 and in the January 2013 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. Alison D. Gernand, PhD, MPH, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of…
Read MoreWhat’s Hot at 2012 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium
A variety of important studies — but no stunning headliner — will be presented at the 35th Annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS), being held December 4 to 8 in Texas, according to one of its codirectors. “It’s a little less obvious this year,” said Peter Ravdin, MD, PhD, about which studies will garner the…
Read MoreStudy Links Relaxation Method to Reduced Hot Flashes
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Although studies of the effects of relaxation techniques on menopause symptoms have yielded mixed results so far, a new report from Sweden comes down in favor of the approach as an alternative to hormone therapy. Postmenopausal women trained to relax before and during the onset of hot flashes cut the…
Read MoreCan Aspirin Prevent Preeclampsia in High-Risk Women
Low-dose aspirin failed to prevent preeclampsia in an underpowered trial, but a meta-analysis including that trial suggests that early introduction of aspirin can prevent preeclampsia and severe preeclampsia. “Even with the available data on low-dose aspirin treatment, there are strong controversial opinions for and against it,” Dr. Pia M. Villa from the University of Helsinki,…
Read MoreHeavy Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Disrupts Brain Development
Heavy prenatal exposure to alcohol may disrupt proper brain development during childhood and adolescence, new research suggests. An international, multisite study of 133 children and youth showed, through the use of structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, that those who had mothers who drank heavily during pregnancy had significantly decreased brain plasticity compared with the…
Read MoreTiming of Hormone Therapy May Affect Alzheimer’s Prevention
A new study further supports the theory of a critical window around the time of menopause during which initiation of hormone therapy (HT) protects against Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The study found that the relationship between HT and AD not only varies with timing of the therapy initiation but also with its type and duration. Women…
Read MoreLabor Induction Does Not Increase Cesarean Risk
Low-risk pregnant women whose labor is induced at term might have no higher risk of cesarean delivery than women who deliver later, a large retrospective study suggests. In fact, perinatal outcomes may be improved. In a September 21 online paper in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Yvonne W. Cheng of the University…
Read MoreProgresterons Curb Preterm Singleton Births
Pooled data indicate that progestogens may help prevent preterm birth among women who’ve delivered early in the past, according to researchers based in Tennessee. But the evidence wasn’t very strong, and any benefit appears limited to singleton pregnancies. As Dr. Frances E. Likis told Reuters Health by email, “Progestogens prevent preterm birth in women who…
Read MoreElectrosurgical Vessel Sealing Improves Some Outcomes of Vaginal Hysterectomy
Compared with conventional clamping and suturing for vaginal hysterectomy, electrosurgical bipolar vessel sealing reduces early pain and shortens operating times, researchers say. In earlier randomized trials, bipolar vessel sealing shortened operative times, reduced blood loss and postoperative pain, and shortened hospital stays. The researchers’ current trial looked at those outcomes, as well as recovery, micturition…
Read MoreMammography Could Reduce Mortality by 50%
Regular screening mammography reduces mortality from breast cancer by at least 50% in women 50 to 69 years of age, not by one fifth as estimated by the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, in the opinion of one public health researcher speaking here at the Union for International Cancer Control World Cancer Congress…
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