https://medicalxpress.com/obstetrics-gynaecology-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Obstetrics and gynaecology Why do food cravings become so strong during pregnancy? Researchers at LSU's Pennington Biomedical Research Center, in collaboration with colleagues, have identified a brain mechanism that may help explain how pregnancy changes motivation to seek certain highly palatable foods. This collaborative study was led by Dr. Yanlin He of Pennington Biomedical Research Center, together with Dr. Pingwen Xu of the University of Illinois Chicago and Dr. Chunmei Wang of Baylor College of Medicine. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-brain-circuit-linked-food-cravings.html Fri, 18 Sep 2026 12:40:06 EDT news708953132 Millions of people around the globe might never know the taste of a PB&J sandwich or crème brûlée because of severe peanut and egg allergies. For a long time, avoiding exposure to allergy-causing foods early in life was considered the best way to prevent this, but now this notion has been turned on its head. Scientists believe exposure as early as during breastfeeding might help children build tolerance to these foods. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-eggs-peanuts-pregnant-infant-allergies.html Fri, 18 Sep 2026 08:49:39 EDT news708940145 Infants born to mothers with depressive symptoms immediately after delivery had a substantially higher risk of dying before their first birthday, according to researchers involved in a Rutgers-led study of more than 414,000 births in New Jersey. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-maternal-postpartum-depressive-symptoms-linked.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 15:40:13 EDT news708871314 Women with a higher body mass index (BMI) in early adulthood may have a lower risk of developing breast cancer after menopause because of lasting changes in the structure of their breast tissue, according to researchers at The University of Manchester and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-early-adult-bmi-postmenopausal-breast.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 11:20:12 EDT news708859861 A simple method involving local anesthesia in the uterus can reduce pain during IUD insertion, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet, published in the journal JAMA. The method also increased the proportion of women who found the procedure tolerable. The results may encourage more women to choose an IUD as a contraceptive method. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-women-pain-iud-insertion-method.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 11:00:21 EDT news708794642 The foundations of brain development are laid during a crucial period of pregnancy, and a common household plasticizer called DEHP may be quietly interfering with this process. Scientists have now found that prenatal exposure to DEHP is linked to higher autism spectrum disorder (ASD)- and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-related symptoms at ages 2 and 4. The effects could be traced back to changes in gene networks that play a key role in brain development. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-plasticizer-exposure-pregnancy-linked-autism.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 10:00:02 EDT news708856331 In Switzerland, around 2,400 children are born as twins every year. When the fetuses share a placenta, they are connected to one another via blood vessels. If the blood circulation becomes unbalanced, this can be life-threatening for both, as too much blood flows from one fetus to the other. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-robotic-high-twin-pregnancies-panoramic.html Thu, 17 Sep 2026 09:00:15 EDT news708853261 A common and often overlooked nutrient deficiency may play a bigger role in pregnancy outcomes than previously recognized. In a recent analysis published in the Journal of Perinatology, neonatologist and pediatrician Carol L. Wagner, M.D., and Anjali G. Borsum, an M.D. candidate at MUSC's College of Medicine, found that among more than 15,000 pregnancies studied at MUSC, women with the lowest vitamin D levels faced the highest risk of preterm birth. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-decade-case-vitamin-d-pregnancy.html Wed, 16 Sep 2026 19:00:01 EDT news708796261 Many women say the same thing during pregnancy: They walk into a room and forget why, misplace their keys or struggle to follow a conversation. This phenomenon, often called "pregnancy brain" or "momnesia," has long lacked a clear biological explanation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-momnesia-real-scientists-biological-explanation.html Wed, 16 Sep 2026 18:00:01 EDT news708795421 New UNSW research published in Translational Psychiatry shows a gut supplement can repair opioid-related damage in rat pups, raising hopes for a future treatment for babies exposed to opioids in the womb. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-gut-supplement-opioid-rat-pups.html Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:20:04 EDT news708770701 A nutrition program for pregnant women inspired by ancestral dietary patterns and adapted to locally available foods in Ecuador increased growth in a key fetal brain region, according to a study led by researchers at Washington University in St. Louis. The study is published in the Sept. 8 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ancestral-diet-pregnancy-trial-boosts.html Wed, 16 Sep 2026 09:40:12 EDT news708769382 Preeclampsia is one of the leading causes of pregnancy-related death. Even after a healthy delivery, mother and baby can go home only to show signs of a postpartum hypertensive disorder days or weeks later. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ai-pathologists-preeclampsia-advancing-diagnosis.html Tue, 15 Sep 2026 11:40:04 EDT news708688741 Pelvic organ prolapse is a common but often overlooked condition that affects millions of women. It occurs when the tissues that support the pelvic organs weaken, allowing organs such as the bladder, uterus or rectum to shift from their normal position. Doctors can assess how severe the prolapse is, but existing tools do not provide much information about what's happening inside the tissue itself. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-based-scans-uncover-hidden-tissue.html Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:40:07 EDT news708345061 Menopause is more than just the end of a woman's reproductive years. It brings a cascade of hormonal changes that can affect overall well-being, giving rise to a range of physical and emotional symptoms. A recent study published in JAMA Network Open has found that a woman's age at menopause is connected to her long-term neurological health and brain structure. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-women-menopause-early-faster-brain.html Wed, 09 Sep 2026 12:10:01 EDT news708165684 Researchers using a portable MRI scanner found that measurable differences in brain volumes emerged at around 12 months of age, offering some of the earliest evidence yet that maternal anemia shapes infant brain development in the first year of life and beyond. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-anemia-pregnancy-linked-differences-babies.html Wed, 09 Sep 2026 11:20:14 EDT news708168182 Breast cancer often grows in tissue that is unusually dense. That's why clinicians flag women with this kind of breast tissue for follow-up after a mammogram. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-dense-breast-tissue-cancer.html Tue, 08 Sep 2026 16:40:05 EDT news708096661