BACKGROUND Animal data suggest that maternal iron deficiency during pregnancy leads to lower birth weight and sustained blood pressure elevation in the offspring. In humans, iron deficiency during pregnancy is common and is associated with adverse birth outcomes such as low birth weight. Data are lacking, however, regarding the effects of maternal iron intake and iron status during pregnancy on...

Background The impact of physical activity (PA) during pregnancy on obstetrical outcomes remains controversial. We followed pregnant women who reported more than 3 hours of sustained PA per week during the first trimester of pregnancy. Cases Total five eligible women were followed. We observed small placenta from the first trimester (median: 0.68; interquartile [IQ]: 0.62-0.97 multiples of medi...

INTRODUCTION Prolonged pregnancy is associated with increased risk of pregnancy complications. The role of body mass index (BMI) is not completely identified in the risk of occurrence of prolonged pregnancy. The aim of this study was to determine the association between BMI and duration of pregnancy in woman referred to the Shariati Maternity Hospital in Bandar Abbas (Hormozgan Province, Iran)....

Interstitial ectopic pregnancy is a rare type of tubal pregnancy that poses diagnostic challenge. It is associated with the highest risk of massive, uncontrollable bleeding and can result in uterine rupture in the second trimester. This is a rare case of unruptured interstitial ectopic diagnosed in the first trimester by ultrasonography and managed medically with systemic methrotrexate and seri...

BACKGROUND Pre-gestational diabetes mellitus is associated with increased risk for maternal and fetal adverse outcomes. This systematic review was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of pre-pregnancy care in improving the rate of congenital malformations and perinatal mortality for women with pre-gestational diabetes mellitus. METHODS We searched the following databases, MEDL...

STUDY QUESTION What is the in situ localization and function of hyperglycosylated hCG (hCG-H) in first trimester pregnancy tissues? SUMMARY ANSWER HCG-H localizes to the syncytiotrophoblast, cytotrophoblast and invasive extravillous trophoblast within the maternal decidua and promotes invasion during the first trimester of pregnancy. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Serum levels of hCG-H decline drama...

A study involving the obstetric clinic population of 3 major teaching hospitals of Karachi has been conducted to define changes in leucocyte and platelet counts as pregnancy progresses. 573 "normal" pregnant women--183 in the first trimester, 195 in the second trimester and 194 in the third trimester were included in this analysis. We have found leucocytosis to be a feature of normal pregnancy;...

Maternal adnexal torsion in pregnancy, with a reported incidence of 1-10 per 10,000 spontaneous pregnancies, is very uncommon. Since it has been described as a severe complication after controlled ovarian hyper-stimulation for in vitro fertilization (IVF), it is more common in IVF pregnancies. This condition mainly occurs in the first trimester; it is rare during the late second trimester. Cons...

The objective of this descriptive study was to examine the vitamin and mineral supplements safety beliefs and practices of Iranian pregnant women. Data were collected from 400 randomly chosen women. More than 50% of the participants believed that taking vitamins and minerals during pregnancy was safe; 87% reported taking iron during pregnancy, of which 71.7 % reported their doctor as the main r...

BACKGROUND Paracetamol is the first choice for antipyretic or analgesic treatment throughout pregnancy. Products with Paracetamol are readily available over the counter and therefore easily accessible for self-medication. Epidemiological data on Paracetamol intake pattern during pregnancy and its potential immunological effects are sparse. We aimed to analyze a possible association between Para...