Protecting children from industrial chemicals in the environment
...ents to provide information on what happens to the fetal nervous system, and the newborn child's nervous system, when it is exposed to an industrial chemical during pregnancy or while breast feeding. Unfortunately, argue Lanphear and colleagues, the most basic toxicity tests in animals are lacking for 75%...New studies show mixed results on epilepsy drugs and birth defects
...t during pregnancy is crucial. "Seizures can cause fetal distress, and the severe epilepsy state called sta...ne to understand how valproic acid works to affect fetal development. "Without good animal models, the mechanism for the abnormalities remains unknown," Peno...Epidemiologist Trichopoulos receives $5.8 million Department of Defense 'Innovator Award'
...ment of Defense (DoD) "Innovator Award" to explore fetal and early-life factors associated with adult breast cancer, including whether exposure to hormones such as estrogens and insulin-like growth factors while in the womb may cause the disease years later. The grant, for $5.8 million over five years, is ...New guideline tackles leading cause of mother and child death
...d raised blood pressure are also significant. Many fetal and maternal deaths from pre-eclampsia are associated with substandard care, claim the guideline authors. Poor management includes failure to identify or act on risk at the beginning of pregnancy or to recognise and respond to signs and symptoms afte...Common anesthetics appear safe for developing fetal brain
...esthesia appears to improve the oxygenation of the fetal brain, according to their novel system for measuri...n real time because of a system they optimized for fetal applications. The technique, called near-infrared spectroscopy, was originally conceived in the 1970...Study suggests smoking while pregnant may increase chromosomal abnormalities in fetal cells
...ciated with increased chromosomal abnormalities in fetal cells, according to a study in the March 9 issue o...by exposure to tobacco. Fetal amniocytes (cells of fetal origin in the amniotic fluid) were obtained by routine amniocentesis for prenatal diagnosis from 25 ...Brain-scanning technologies need standards, according to Stanford researcher
...Brain imaging is also making inroads in diagnosing fetal abnormalities. Women who have an unusual ultrasound can now receive follow-up MRI screening to confirm the finding. The question is whether this expensive screening alters the woman's care and is therefore something that should be covered by insuranc...No increase in C-sections when epidural analgesia given early in labor
...is often incomplete and has potential maternal and fetal side effects, including neonatal and maternal respiratory depression, especially when spinal or epidural opioids are administered concomitantly," Wong said. The Northwestern study examined 750 full-term, nulliparous (no previous births) women in spo...Mothers' exposure to air pollutants linked to chromosome damage in babies
...egnancy can result in chromosomal abnormalities in fetal tissues," said Kenneth Olden, Ph.D., the director ...ustion-related air pollutants significantly reduce fetal growth, which may affect cognitive development during childhood. The study is part of a broader, mul...Birth size and adult cancer risk
...nd adult cancer are related to some aspects of the fetal environment or the number of cells at risk of carcinogenesis. "We have found some evidence supporting the hypothesis that larger birth size is associated with increased risk of certain adult cancers," the authors report. "However, our findings sugges...New system may help babies avoid brain damage
...n an electrocardiogram, or ECG, with the standard fetal heart rate monitoring performed on 80 to 90 percen...trode on the baby's head via the vagina to pick up fetal heartbeat, which is translated into a pattern. Although obstetricians know certain heart rate patter...Birth simulator helps physicians I.D. least forceful way to manage problem deliveries
...rnal model with a three-dimensional bony pelvis, a fetal model, a force-sensing glove, and a computer-based...e legs that can be moved to rotate the pelvis. The fetal model consists of a cloth mannequin outfitted with a joystick device, a spring and wooden dowels rep...Rutgers-Newark researchers link early movement, brain development
...b and whole body jerks, which are similar to human fetal movements. By studying the relationship between these movements and neuronal activity in the sensory part of the cerebral cortex, the researchers determined that the information provided to the developing brain by these random movements are critical ...Safety of childbirth after C-section examined
...e approximately 12,000 women had other maternal or fetal indications for a repeat cesarean delivery. The st...This is particularly important with respect to the fetal outcomes associated with uterine rupture. It is important to share this new data with women regardin...Risks from labor after prior cesarean delivery low, study reports
...very include failure of labor to proceed normally, fetal heart rate abnormalities, and complications involv...s the placenta leaving the uterus, which may cause fetal heart rate abnormalities and perhaps fetal death. A more severe, or catastrophic, rupture may resul...Surgeons pinch more than an inch from the arm to rebuild a micropenis
...quate testosterone in the 2nd and 3rd trimester of fetal growth, although there may be other causes such as genetic make-up or androgen insensitivity, where the fetus begins as a male but is insensitive to the male hormone testosterone during growth. A number of treatments are available or alternatively ge...Ongoing transfusions needed to avoid strokes in children with sickle cell disease
...er study in children. The drug raises the level of fetal hemoglobin, which cannot sickle. Another approach is modifying the transfusion program to deliver less iron. Dr. McKie, Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and STOP II co-investigator, concurs that STOP 2 is not the end of the story. "Now it's time to s...No long-term harm from repeated prenatal ultrasound examination
...onwards might be associated with a small effect on fetal growth but is followed in childhood by growth and measures of developmental outcome similar to those in children who had received a single prenatal scan."...Artery variations increase complication risk in liver transplants
...having such a variant anatomy, which occurs during fetal development, usually does not affect a healthy person. However, the knowledge can be of great help for some liver transplant recipients. "If we know a transplant recipient has a variant liver artery, we need to carefully follow these patients after l...Prenatal alcohol exposure has effects far beyond fetal alcohol syndrome
Many children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) have an IQ of less than 70....udies have documented IQ deficits in children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Little research, however, has found IQ deficits in children with alcohol-re...