BACKGROUND Air pollution exposure during pregnancy might affect placental growth and function, perhaps leading to pregnancy complications. OBJECTIVE We prospectively evaluated the associations of maternal air pollution exposure with markers of placental growth and function among 7,801 pregnant women in the Netherlands. METHODS We estimated levels of particulate matter ≤ 10 µm in aerodynamic...

OBJECTIVE To assess the impact of a sonographic diagnosis of marginal placental cord insertion on birth weight and duration of pregnancy. METHODS A retrospective chart review was performed for 100 singleton pregnancies with prospectively identified marginal placental cord insertion. RESULTS Birth weights below the 10th percentile occurred in 6.25% of pregnancies without preeclampsia. Sponta...

The objective of this work was to study the effect of high altitude on full term birth weight, body shape and body composition of newborn infants. Twenty five healthy pregnant Saudi women and their healthy newborns from high altitude (2850-3150 m) and equal numbers from low altitude (500 m). For each pregnant woman haemoglobin concentration, haematocrit value and blood pressures were measured a...

STUDY QUESTION Have changes in culture media used for IVF resulted in changes in offspring birthweight or placental weight that differed from the trends in offspring from spontaneous conceptions during the corresponding time periods? SUMMARY ANSWER Changes in culture media used for IVF were associated with significant differences in offspring birthweight and in placental weight to birthweight...

To evaluate the role of insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and IGF-binding proteins (IGFBPs) in excessive fetal growth (macrosomia) in diabetic pregnancy, 84 insulin-treated diabetic mothers and their infants were tested for serum concentrations of IGF-I, IFG-II, and IGFBP-1, -2 and -3. These parameters were correlated with the birth weight of neonates and placental weight. IGF-I and II levels ...

Sucralose is a sweetener of general use in over three thousand products (beverages, foods and medical diets), with utilization currently permitted for the general population in more than 80 countries, including for women of reproductive age. There is little information on the safe use of sucralose, and experimental studies have suggested that the administration of some sweeteners, by diverse ro...

The ANP knockout mouse is reported to exhibit pregnancy-associated hypertension, proteinuria and impaired placental trophoblast invasion and spiral artery remodeling, key features of pre-eclampsia (PE). We hypothesized that these mice may provide a relevant model of human PE with associated fetal growth restriction (FGR). Here, we investigated pregnancies of ANP wild type (ANP(+/+)), heterozygo...

OBJECTIVE To verify changes in placental morphology of small for gestational age newborns, considering that the occurrence of placental alterations is more frequent in small for gestational age (SGA) infants than in appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants. METHODS Fifty SGA newborns were included in a cross-sectional study, which involved gross anatomy and light microscopy of placenta, ...