BACKGROUND Oligohydramnios has been shown to be a predictor of intrapartal fetal distress. In a selected group of low-risk pregnancies, however, it has not yet been established that oligohydramnios contributes to intrapartal fetal distress. METHODS Ultrasonically estimated four-quadrant amniotic fluid index as a test for admission to the labor ward was evaluated as a predictive factor for fet...

Labor is a physiological event involving a sequential, integrated set of changes within the myometrium, deciduas, and uterine cervix that occur gradually over a period of days to weeks. Biochemical connective tissue changes in the uterine cervix appear to precede uterine contractions and cervical dilation, and all of these events usually occur before rupture of the fetal membranes. In other wor...

Labor is a physiological event involving a sequential, integrated set of changes within the myometrium, deciduas, and uterine cervix that occur gradually over a period of days to weeks. Biochemical connective tissue changes in the uterine cervix appear to precede uterine contractions and cervical dilation, and all of these events usually occur before rupture of the fetal membranes. In other wor...

BACKGROUND Amniocentesis is the accepted mode of attaining amniotic fluid to perform tests for fetal lung maturity. The purpose of this study was to validate a non-invasive fetal lung maturity test by counting lamellar bodies from a vaginal pool among women with preterm premature rupture of membranes. METHODS In a prospective study, amniotic fluid specimens were collected from a vaginal pool ...

As part of a cohort study of the effects of chronic exposure to lead on pregnancy outcome and child development, lead concentrations in the umbilical cord and placental tissues (body and membranes) from 9 late fetal deaths, 23 preterm births, and 18 births associated with premature rupture of the amniotic membranes were compared with the lead concentrations in the tissues obtained at 22 normal ...

The management of patients with premature rupture of membranes has changed markedly in the past several years. The basis for this is a combination of a better understanding of newborn physiology, improved neonatal care, refinements in antibiotic therapy, and the widespread use of maternal and fetal monitoring. The best outcome for both mother and infant undoubtedly reflects data based on a comb...

Premature or Prelabour Rupture Of Membranes is classically defined as the rupture of integrity of the fetal membranes before the onset of labour and resulting in leakage of amniotic fluid [1-4]. Pre-labour rupture of membranes without spontaneous uterine contractions complicate approximately 10 % of all pregnancies, out of which 80 % occurs at term [5]. The management of PROM at term remains a ...