Postnatal depression is a significant problem affecting 10-15% of mothers in many countries and has been the subject of an increasing number of publications. Prenatal depression has been studied less. The aims of the present investigation were: 1) to obtain information on the prevalence of prenatal and postnatal depression in low income Brazilian women by using an instrument already employed in...

BACKGROUND Traditional birth attendants (TBAs) have been a subject of discussion in the provision of maternal and newborn health care. The objective of this study was to assess the role of trained traditional birth attendants in maternal and newborn health care in Afar Regional State of Ethiopia. METHODS A qualitative study was used where 21 in-depth interviews and 6 focus group discussions w...

OBJECTIVES To examine associations between exposure to prenatal smoking and early-life changes in fat mass (FM), fat-free mass (FFM), and anthropometrics. METHODS About 670 mother-offspring pairs were analyzed in the longitudinal Healthy Start study. Maternal smoking data were collected during prenatal research visits. Offspring body composition and size were measured by air displacement plet...

The paper investigates the health care and health condition among the tribal women in comparison to the non-tribal women in the newly formed state of Jharkhand by drawing upon data from the National Family Health Survey 2, conducted during 1998-99. The non-tribal women were better off than the tribal women in terms of standard of living, education and other socio-demographic indicators. The pap...

Pregnancy-related complications may result in maternal deaths post-delivery especially in developing countries. Skilled deliveries and postnatal care (PNC) use in Kenya is low. The objective of this study was to identify the determinants of PNC use. Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (2008-09 KDHS) women’s data were analyzed. Overall data from 3,970 women were analyzed. Results indicate that 4...

The Philippines annual birth cohort of over 2 million is the second largest in the Western Pacific Region; 44% of births occur outside health facilities. With third dose infant hepatitis B (HB) vaccine coverage of 43% in 2006, erratic vaccine supply, and lack of policies or processes for universal HB vaccine birth dose delivery, a substantial burden of preventable chronic HB infection continues...

Annular placenta is an extremely rare morphological type of human placenta. It is commonly related to placental vessel abnormalities frequently causing antenatal and postnatal hemorrhage and operative delivery. Gravida 4 para 1 had an uneventful course of pregnancy and normal vaginal delivery followed by moderate postpartum hemorrhage. Hemorrhage was found to be local in origin but the placenta...

HIV pandemic is one of the most serious health crises the world faces today. Approximately 5-10% of all cases of HIV are children. Majority of children acquire infection through mother-to-child transmission either during pregnancy, delivery, or by breast-feeding. MTCT can be reduced to <2% by antiretroviral prophylaxis to women during pregnancy and labour and to the infant in the first weeks of...

BACKGROUND The New Rural Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) includes a maternal care benefits package that is associated with increasing maternal health services. The local compensation policies have been frequently adjusted in recent years. This study examined the association between the NCMS maternal-services policy adjustment and expense reimbursement in Yuyao, China. METHODS Two household ...

A variety of health financing schemes shaped on pre-payment scheme have been implemented across Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to address the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In Mauritania, the Obstetric Risk Insurance package (ORI) focusing on maternal and perinatal health has been progressively implemented at the health district level since 2002. Here, our main objective was to assess the effec...