http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Maternal use of valproate (a drug used for the treatment of epilepsy and other neuropsychological disorders) during pregnancy was associated with a significantly increased risk of autism in offspring, according to a study in the April 24 issue of JAMA. The authors caution that these findings must be balanced against the treatment benefits for women who require valproate for epilepsy control. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-anti-epileptic-drug-pregnancy-autism.html Autism spectrum disorders Tue, 23 Apr 2013 16:51:05 EST news285954651 (HealthDay)—For infants with critical congenital heart defects (CCHDs), one-year survival has improved over time, with an increased risk of mortality associated with earlier diagnosis, low birth weight, and maternal age, according to a study published online April 22 in Pediatrics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-one-year-survival-critical-congenital-heart.html Pediatrics Mon, 22 Apr 2013 18:10:01 EST news285871092 Independent maternal demographic factors such as social status, ethnicity and maternal age can predict the likelihood of operative births in the UK, according to a new study published today (20 March) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-demographic-factors-births-uk-women.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Wed, 20 Mar 2013 13:11:49 EST news283003902 (HealthDay)—Maternal alcohol-use disorder increases the risk of both sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and non-SIDS-related infant mortality, according to a study published online Feb. 25 in Pediatrics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-infant-mortality-maternal-alcohol.html Pediatrics Mon, 25 Feb 2013 12:56:20 EST news281019373 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 First pregnancies complicated by postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) have no detrimental effect on future fertility but women who have caesarean sections at the time of PPH are less likely to conceive again, finds a new study published today in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-postpartum-hemorrhage-pregnancy-affect-future.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 22 Jan 2013 19:00:01 EST news278098760 (HealthDay)—Women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are significantly more likely to receive an emergency cesarean section, have their infant admitted to a neonatal care unit, and incur significantly higher maternity care costs, compared to women without GDM, according to research published online Dec. 28 in Diabetes Care. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-gestational-diabetes-ups-maternity-one-third.html Diabetes Tue, 22 Jan 2013 10:32:59 EST news278073171 A large, multi-center clinical trial led by researchers from Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) shows that a new genetic test resulted in significantly more clinically relevant information than the current standard method of prenatal testing. The test uses microarray analysis to conduct a more comprehensive examination of a fetus's DNA than is possible with the current standard method, karyotyping—a visual analysis of the fetus's chromosomes. Results were published in the Dec. 6, 2012, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-prenatal-chromosomal-microarray-standard.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Wed, 05 Dec 2012 17:00:15 EST news273930236 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 An elegant new study confirms that the most commonly used method of screening for embryo abnormalities following in vitro fertilization (IVF) does accurately predict the success of embryo transplantation for younger women, but not necessarily for those of advanced maternal age. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-reveals-embryo-biopsy-women-advanced.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Wed, 07 Nov 2012 15:00:01 EST news271508527 A mother's age at menopause may predict her daughter's fertility in terms of the numbers of eggs remaining in her ovaries, according to the new research published online in Europe's leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction today. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-mothers-age-menopause-daughters-ovarian.html Medical research Tue, 06 Nov 2012 19:00:01 EST news271417770 In vitro fertilization (IVF) may significantly increase the risk of birth defects, particularly those of the eye, heart, reproductive organs and urinary systems, according to new research presented Saturday, Oct. 20, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-vitro-fertilization-linked-birth-defects.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Sat, 20 Oct 2012 04:47:02 EST news269927204 (Medical Xpress)—Previously existing ideas on how advanced maternal age affects adult health of children have to be reconsidered. It had been thought that mothers delivering later in life have children that are less healthy as adults, because the body of the mother had already degenerated due to physiological effects like decreasing oocyte quality or a weakened placenta. In fact, what affects the health of the grown-up children is not the age of their mother but her education and the number of years she survives after giving birth and thus spends with her offspring. This is the conclusion of a new study by Mikko Myrskylä from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, Germany carried out with data from 18,000 US children and their mothers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-advanced-maternal-age-children-adulthood.html Health Thu, 06 Sep 2012 10:25:44 EST news266145929 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 Do older fathers doom their children to genetic disease? http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-children-older-men-gene-abnormalities.html Genetics Wed, 22 Aug 2012 13:52:19 EST news264862325 (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 (HealthDay) -- During assisted reproductive technology, increasing maternal age and number of cycles is linked to lower live-birth rates with the use of autologous oocytes, but not donor oocytes, according to a study published in the June 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-art-live-birth-approach-natural-fecundity.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Thu, 28 Jun 2012 04:40:02 EST news260075950 Women who have a fear of childbirth spend longer in labour than women who have no such fear, suggests new research published today (27 June) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-women-childbirth-longer-labor.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 26 Jun 2012 19:00:01 EST news259947658 (HealthDay) -- First-time mothers in their early 30s and beyond are more likely to experience psychological distress during pregnancy and after birth than younger women, but only if they have a history of depression, according to a study published online June 18 in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-older-mothers-prone-psychological-distress.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 26 Jun 2012 16:31:32 EST news259947083 Low and moderate weekly alcohol consumption in early pregnancy is not associated with adverse neuropsychological effects in children aged five, suggests a series of papers published today in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. However, high levels of alcohol per week were linked with a lower attention span among five year olds. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-lowmoderate-early-pregnancy-adverse-effects.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:00:07 EST news259347778 Current screening strategies for Down syndrome, caused by fetal trisomy 21 (T21), and Edwards syndrome, caused by fetal trisomy 18 (T18), have false positive rates of 2 to 3%, and false negative rates of 5% or higher. Positive screening results must be confirmed by amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling, which carry a fetal loss rate of approximately 1 in 300 procedures. Now an international, multicenter cohort study finds that a genetic test to screen for trisomy 21 or 18 from a maternal blood sample is almost 100% accurate. The results of the study are published online in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-noninvasive-genetic-syndrome-edwards-highly.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Tue, 05 Jun 2012 16:22:52 EST news258132162 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 Delayed childbearing for an increasing number of women is putting them at higher risk of serious illness and complications, a new study has found. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-older-mums-health.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Thu, 17 May 2012 09:00:02 EST news256463451 In a study published in the May 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, led by Mr. Sven Sandin, of the Karolinska Institutet, Sweden and King's College London, researchers analyzed past studies to investigate possible associations between maternal age and autism. While much research has been done to identify potential genetic causes of autism, this analysis suggests that non-heritable and environmental factors may also play a role in children's risk for autism. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-higher-maternal-age-autism.html Autism spectrum disorders Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:13:19 EST news254653988 Women take longer to give birth today than did women 50 years ago, according to an analysis of nearly 140,000 deliveries conducted by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The researchers could not identify all of the factors that accounted for the increase, but concluded that the change is likely due to changes in delivery room practice. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-nih-women-longer-labor-years.html Obstetrics & gynaecology Fri, 30 Mar 2012 18:57:21 EST news252352632 Women with low risk pregnancies should be able to choose where they give birth, concludes a study published in the British Medical Journal today. Although it shows that first-time mums who opt for a home birth are at a higher risk of adverse outcomes, the overall risk is low in all birth settings. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-pregnant-women-complications-safely-choice.html Health Fri, 25 Nov 2011 05:06:53 EST news241419995 Age and body mass index (BMI)are important risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) particularly amongst South Asian and Black African women finds new research published today (02 November) in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-age-bmi-likelihood-gestational-diabetes.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:57:06 EST news239428617 A research group from the Nordic countries (the MART group -- Morbidity in ART) found a marginally higher but overall still low risk of stillbirth among children conceived after assisted reproduction treatment (ART) compared to naturally conceived children, the 27th Annual Meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology heard Wednesday. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-nordic-marginally-higher-stillbirth-art.html Other Wed, 06 Jul 2011 03:44:49 EST news229142660 Further evidence of how maternal characteristics can influence the development of children born after in vitro fertilization was presented to the annual conference of the European Society of Human Fertilization and Embryology today. A study of all 8941 IVF children born in Sweden between 2002 and 2006 where only one baby was born as a result of a single pregnancy showed that maternal age, primiparity, smoking, maternal infertility and body mass index, both over and underweight, were associated with an adverse perinatal outcome. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-factors-affecting-obstetric-outcomes-ivf.html Other Tue, 05 Jul 2011 10:30:18 EST news229080578 Ovarian stimulation undertaken by women of advanced maternal age receiving fertility treatment may be disrupting the normal pattern of meiosis -- a critical process of chromosome duplication followed by two specialized cell divisions in the production of oocytes and sperm - and leading to abnormalities of chromosome copy numbers that result in IVF failure, pregnancy loss or, more rarely, the birth of affected children with conditions such as Down's syndrome, which is caused by the inheritance of three copies of chromosome 21. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-07-ovarian-chromosome-abnormalities.html Other Tue, 05 Jul 2011 10:29:05 EST news229080528