Obesity is a chronic condition linked with diabetes, stroke, coronary artery disease, and hypertension. 1 The estimated prevalence of obesity in the United States (26.7%) and Rhode Island (24.9%) has increased over the past decades. Obese women are at increased risk for pregnancy complications and poor birth outcomes. Specifically, prepregnancy obesity has been associated with birth defects, es...

We describe 2 siblings with the contiguous X-linked gene deletion syndrome, complex glycerol kinase deficiency. The elder sibling demonstrated the difficulties diagnosing this rare condition. Affected children have the combined complications of congenital adrenal hypoplasia, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and glycerol kinase deficiency. These patients illustrate the importance of genetic testing ...

OBJECTIVE To assess the association between pre-gestational obesity and weight gain with cesarean delivery and labor complications. METHODS A total of 4,486 women 20-28 weeks pregnant attending general prenatal care clinics of the national health system in Brazil from 1991 to 1995 were enrolled and followed up through birth. Body mass index categories based on prepregnancy weight and total we...

BACKGROUND Many pregnant women continue to drink alcohol despite clinical recommendations and public health campaigns about the risks associated with alcohol use during pregnancy. This review examines the predictors of prenatal alcohol use, with the long-term goal of developing more effective preventive efforts. METHODS A literature search of several databases for relevant articles was undert...

The purpose of the present study was to discriminate between the 2 dominant perspectives governing research on the nature of marital change over the transition to parenthood. Progress can be made in understanding this transition by recognizing the role of uncontrolled sources of variability in research designs, defining and using control groups, and timing of data collection around the child's ...

BACKGROUND Although recommended for almost a decade, evidence for field effectiveness of vaccinating close adult contacts of newborn infants against pertussis ("cocooning") is lacking. We evaluated the impact of a government-funded cocoon program during a pertussis epidemic in New South Wales, Australia. METHODS We matched all New South Wales laboratory-confirmed pertussis cases aged <4 month...

Objective. To identify maternal and early childhood risk factors for obesity and overweight among children at age 5 in the state of Alabama. Methods. We recruited 740 mothers during early pregnancy from University of Alabama Prenatal Clinics in a prospective cohort study and followed them throughout pregnancy. We followed their children from birth until 5 years of age. The main outcome measure ...

OBJECTIVES In 2012, theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention initiated a national anti-smoking campaign, Tips from Former Smokers (Tips). As a result of the campaign, quit attempts among smokers increased in the general population by 3.7 percentage points. In the current study, we assessed the effects of Tips on smoking cessation in pregnant women. METHODS We used 2009-2013 certificates ...

OBJECTIVES There is a dearth of information on the long-term maternal effects of breastfeeding. The objective of this study was to examine adherence to breastfeeding recommendations of exclusive breastfeeding for ≥4 months and continuation of breastfeeding for ≥1 year and maternal weight retention 6 years after delivery. METHODS Using data from the Infant Feeding Practices Study II (IFPS II),...