http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (Medical Xpress)—The biggest study of fetal growth and autism to date has reported that babies whose growth is at either extreme in the womb are at greater risk of developing autism. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-05-bigger-birth-weight-babies-greater.html Autism spectrum disorders Wed, 01 May 2013 08:25:31 EST news286615519 Understanding the molecular control of placenta formation, the organ which enables fetal growth, is critical in diagnosing and treating related pregnancy complications. A group of scientists at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China, and the University of Calgary, Canada has revealed a molecular feedback loop that governs the earliest steps of placenta formation in mice, which is known to mimic placenta formation in humans. Their findings are published April 16 in the open access journal PLOS Biology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-molecular-early-placenta-formation-clues.html Medical research Tue, 16 Apr 2013 17:27:42 EST news285352056 Reanalysis of the World Health Organization's Antenatal Care Trial (WHOACT) shows that there is an increased risk of fetal death at between 32 and 36 weeks for women who have a reduced antenatal care package, finds research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Reproductive Health. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-antenatal.html Health Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:00:01 EST news284915380 Drinking just two cups of coffee a day is associated with the risk of low birth weight. Researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have conducted a study on 59,000 women in collaboration with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-coffee-tea-pregnancy-affect-fetal.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Mon, 11 Mar 2013 10:26:20 EST news282216375 Malaria in pregnancy causes a range of adverse effects, including abortions, stillbirths, premature delivery and low infant birth weight. Many of these effects are thought to derive from a placental inflammatory response resulting from interaction of infected red blood cells with the placental tissue. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-placental-blood-malaria-pregnancy.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 31 Jan 2013 17:00:02 EST news278869785 The authors say spotting it early could substantially reduce the risk, and this needs to become a cornerstone of safety and effectiveness in antenatal care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-fetal-growth-problems-early-uk.html Health Thu, 24 Jan 2013 18:30:01 EST news278272779 An international team of genetics researchers has discovered four new gene regions that contribute to low birth weight. Three of those regions influence adult metabolism, and appear to affect longer-term outcomes such as adult height, risk of type 2 diabetes and adult blood pressure. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-genes-linked-birth-weight-adult.html Genetics Sun, 02 Dec 2012 13:00:56 EST news273666993 Babies born to mothers with bipolar disorder are at increased risk of preterm birth (before 37 weeks) a study published today on BMJ website suggests. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-pregnancy-birth-complications-mothers-bipolar.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 08 Nov 2012 18:30:03 EST news271613969 Women who were born preterm are at increased risk of complications during pregnancy compared to those born at term, and the risk almost doubles for mothers born before 32 weeks, according to a study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-preterm-birth-mother-pregnancy-complications.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Mon, 24 Sep 2012 12:00:12 EST news267702725 The rate of pregnancy-associated cancer is increasing and is only partially explained by the rise in older mothers suggests new research published today (5 September) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-women-pregnancy-associated-cancer.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Wed, 05 Sep 2012 03:35:10 EST news266034900 In studies examining the risk of adverse outcomes after receipt of the influenza A(H1N1) vaccine, infants exposed to the vaccine in utero did not have a significantly increased risk of major birth defects, preterm birth, or fetal growth restriction; while in another, study researchers found a small increased risk in adults of the nervous system disorder, Guillain-Barre syndrome, during the 4 to 8 weeks after vaccination, according to 2 studies in the July 11 issue of JAMA. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-scientists-poor-birth-outcomes-h1n1.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 10 Jul 2012 16:08:23 EST news261155250 (HealthDay) -- Maternal prenatal caffeine intake is not associated with behavior problems in young children, according to a study published online July 9 in Pediatrics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-prenatal-caffeine-intake-linked-children.html Pediatrics Mon, 09 Jul 2012 15:17:38 EST news261065851 Standing for long periods during pregnancy may curb the growth of the developing fetus, suggests research published online in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-periods-pregnancy-curb-fetal-growth.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Wed, 27 Jun 2012 18:49:11 EST news260041738 Researchers from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) and the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) have found a protein in the blood of pregnant women that can predict if they are likely to have a fetus that doesn't grow properly, and thus has a high risk of stillbirth and long-term health complications. The research, led by Dr. Andrée Gruslin, could lead to a widely available blood test and could help develop ways for improving the outcomes of women and their children who face this risk — estimated to be as many as one of every 20 pregnancies. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-blood-pregnant-women-dangerously-small.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:13:16 EST news259495985 Factors influencing early life non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) incidence include family characteristics, high fetal growth, older maternal age, low birth order, and male gender, according to a study published May 22 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-early-life-factors-non-hodgkin-lymphoma.html Cancer Tue, 22 May 2012 16:00:01 EST news256904730 Excess weight in pregnant women, both before pregnancy and gained during pregnancy, is the main predictor of whether mothers will have larger than average babies, which can result in increased risk of cesarean section or trauma during delivery, states a study published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-excess-maternal-weight-pregnancy-result.html Pediatrics Tue, 22 May 2012 12:00:01 EST news256904363 Obesity during pregnancy puts women at higher risk of a multitude of challenges. But, according to a new study presented earlier this month at the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine annual convention, fetal growth restriction, or the poor growth of a baby while in the mother's womb, is not one of them. In fact, study authors from the University of Rochester Medical Center found that the incidence of fetal growth restriction was lower in obese women when compared to non-obese women. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-slow-growing-babies-normal-weight-women-common.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Fri, 27 Apr 2012 12:11:34 EST news254747478 Investigators in The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital have developed a mouse model in which a mother's urinary tract infection negatively affects the offspring, an occurrence anecdotally observed in humans. Using this first-of-its-kind model, they have identified proteins in the blood that may indicate whether such an infection might stunt fetal growth. Study findings have been published in the March 21, 2012, edition of PLoS ONE. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-potential-biomarkers-linked-uti-related-pregnancy.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Thu, 22 Mar 2012 10:41:09 EST news251631642 Lymphoma is the fourth most common cancer in pregnancy, affecting one in 6000 pregnancies. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, acute leukaemia, and other blood cancers, while also rare, can also occur in pregnancy. The need for urgent chemotherapy and the increased risk of blood clots during pregnancy, which is enhanced in blood cancers, mean that it is advisable to terminate a pregnancy if it is in its early stages to protect the health of the mother. However cancers discovered later in pregnancy can be treated. The issues around blood cancers in pregnancy are discussed in the third paper of The Lancet Series on pregnancy in cancer, written by Dr Benjamin Brenner, Department of Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel, and colleagues. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-complications-blood-cancers-termination-early.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:30:02 EST news248008237 In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that indicate that women who deliver their first baby early are more likely to have a subsequent baby that is small for its gestational age, even when the second pregnancy is carried to term. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-prior-preterm-delivery-subsequent-baby.html Health Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:20:01 EST news247985214 Accelerated growth in the first three months of life, but not fetal growth, is associated with an increased risk of asthma symptoms in young children, according to a new study from The Generation R Study Group at Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-infant-growth-future-asthma-symptoms.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 20 Jan 2012 03:57:05 EST news246254208 Pregnant women sacrifice many of life's simple pleasures - caffeine, sushi, a glass of wine - in the hope that their baby will be born healthy. But according to a provocative new field of research, what happens during pregnancy can have lasting consequences that emerge decades after the child leaves the hospital. Studies are finding that adult illnesses like heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes can have roots in the mysterious months we spend in the womb. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-disease-partially-womb-scientists.html Health Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:50:01 EST news241278599 Being born prematurely may increase your risk of developing epilepsy as an adult, according to a new study published in the October 4, 2011, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-premature-birth-epilepsy-life.html Neuroscience Mon, 03 Oct 2011 17:11:39 EST news236880689 George R. Saade, M.D., president of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine and professor of obstetrics and gynecology at The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, gave a compelling presentation to SMFM members on the links between pregnancy outcomes and women's long-term health. He emphasized the importance of greater physician collaboration in reviewing patients' health records, particularly in noting pregnancy outcomes as these can be important indicators of future health problems. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-women-long-term-health-based-pregnancy.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 13 Sep 2011 10:53:50 EST news235130019 Parental exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) during pregnancy is associated with decreased birth weight of offspring, compared with offspring from families without parental BPA exposure in the workplace, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-parental-exposure-bpa-pregnancy-decreased.html Health Thu, 05 May 2011 09:32:19 EST news223806709 Some 2.6 million third trimester stillbirths worldwide occur every year, according to the first comprehensive set of stillbirth estimates, published today within a special series in the medical journal The Lancet. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-stillbirths-invisible-health-problem.html Health Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:20:01 EST news221973134