BACKGROUND Obesity before pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of several adverse outcomes of pregnancy. The risk profiles among lean, normal, or mildly overweight women are not, however, well established. METHODS We studied the associations between prepregnancy body-mass index (defined as the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters) and the frequency of la...

OBJECTIVE To identify potential risk factors for cesarean delivery following labor induction in multiparous women at term. METHODS We conducted a retrospective case-control study. Cases were parous women in whom the induction of labor had resulted in a cesarean delivery. For each case, we used the data of two successful inductions as controls. Successful induction was defined as a vaginal del...

BACKGROUND Precipitous labor is defined as expulsion of the fetus within less than 3 hours of commencement of regular contractions. We retrospectively examined our cases of precipitous labor to identify the clinical significance and perinatal outcomes following precipitous labor in singleton vertex deliveries. METHODS A retrospective population-based study was conducted comparing women with s...

A study in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia investigated the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and its predictors in a high-parity group of pregnant women (n = 633, 50.1% grand multiparas). The prevalence of GDM was 12.5% and 3.8% by World Health Organization and American Diabetes Association criteria respectively. Multiparous women were 8.29 times more likely to have GDM than nulliparous w...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate serum chlamydia antibody titers (CATs) in tubal occlusion or previous ectopic pregnancy and the associated risk factors. METHODS The study population consisted of 55 women wih tubal damage and 55 parous women. CAT was measured using the whole-cell inclusion immunofluorescence test and cervical chlamydial DNA detected by PCR. Odds ratios were calculated to assess variable...

We have postulated that the lifetime protective effect of an early pregnancy against breast cancer is due to the complete differentiation of the mammary gland characterized by a specific genomic signature imprinted by the physiological process of pregnancy. For demonstrating this hypothesis we compared the genomic profile of the epithelium and the stroma of normal breast tissues from reduction ...

BACKGROUND Chronic pelvic pain (CPP) affects 15-24% of women and can have a devastating impact on quality of life. Laparoscopy is often used in the investigation, although in one third of the examinations there is no visible pathology and the women may be dismissed without further investigation. Also, the contribution of skeletal, muscular, periosteal and ligamentous tissues to CPP remains to b...

OBJECTIVE To study the association between duration of second stage of labour and risks of maternal complications (infection, urinary retention, haematoma or ruptured sutures) in the early postpartum period. DESIGN Population-based cohort study. SETTING AND SAMPLE We included 72 593 mothers with singleton vaginal deliveries at ≥37 weeks of gestation in cephalic presentation, using the obste...

BACKGROUND Data from the Carolina Breast Cancer Study, a population-based, case-control study of breast cancer in African-American and white women residents of North Carolina, were evaluated to determine whether specific aspects of lactation are associated with a reduction in the risk of breast cancer. METHODS Analyses included 751 parous cases and 742 parous controls frequency-matched on age...