Archive for September, 2008

Nicotine gum doesn’t help pregnant smokers quit smoking, but it may help them smoke fewer cigarettes — reducing their risk of having a premature or low-birth-weight baby, according to a small study.

The study is one of the few to examine the effect of nicotine replacement in pregnancy. Nicotine-replacement products haven’t been approved for pregnant women, although 12% of expectant mothers smoke.

The nearly 200 women in the study smoked an average of 18 cigarettes a day before pregnancy and 10 a day in the week before beginning the study.

Those given nicotine gum cut back by five or six cigarettes each day, while those who were given placebos cut back by three or four cigarettes a day.

Doctors also noticed that babies born to moms who chewed nicotine gum were less likely to need intensive care and had shorter hospital stays, although researchers say it’s possible that this could have been due to chance.

Avoiding tobacco is one of the most important things a woman can do to protect her baby, experts say. Smoking doubles the risk of low birth weight and prematurity, and causes up to 10% of infant deaths, according to the study.

The fetal non-stress test is a very simple and non-invasive procedure performed after 28 weeks of gestation.

So named because it ensures no stress is placed on your fetus during the test, and it also helps to evaluate your baby’s condition.

The procedure involves monitoring of your baby’s heartbeat in order to ensure that s/he is getting sufficient oxygen levels through the placenta.

The heartbeat is recorded both when the baby is resting and also when s/he is moving. Usually, the baby’s heartbeat is recorded as high when s/he is moving or kicking.

Typically, the test is performed if you are in post-date pregnancy or if you have a high-risk pregnancy, in the month before the due date.

Reasons against non-stress test:

• If you are suffering from diabetes and being treated with regular insulin, high blood pressure or any other medical issues that keep your pregnancy at high risk.
• If you suffer from gestational hypertension;
• If your baby is under-sized and not growing enough;
• If the baby is inactive than normal;
• If the level of amniotic fluid is high or even too low;

Continuous glucose monitoring as part of antenatal care for women with diabetes improves maternal blood glucose control and lowers birth weight and risk of macrosomia* (excessive birth weight in babies), according to a study.

During pregnancy it is important that women with diabetes keep their blood glucose under control.

If not, there may be an increase in the amount of glucose reaching the baby, which makes the baby grow faster than normal, and may cause difficulties at birth as well as an increased longer term risk of insulin resistance, obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Evidence suggests that measuring glucose more often improves outcomes, but the optimum frequency of blood glucose testing is not known.

Dr Helen Murphy and colleagues examined whether continuous glucose monitoring during pregnancy can improve maternal glucose control and reduce birth weight and risk of macrosomia in babies of mothers with diabetes.

They recruited 71 pregnant women with type 1 and type 2 diabetes from antenatal clinics in the UK.

The women were randomly assigned to standard antenatal care (intermittent self monitoring of glucose levels using the finger prick technique) or intermittent monitoring plus continuous glucose monitoring (using glucose values from subcutaneous tissues measured electronically every 10 seconds, giving up to 288 measurements a day).

During this week, you will observe a rapid development in your baby’s growth and also the uterus continues its growth.

Along with these, you will observe great changes in you and your baby.

What are the physical changes that occur in your body during pregnancy week 24?

Your weight continues to grow and now the uterus is about 1½ -2 inches above your bellybutton. It is very normal to experience anxiety about your weight gain.

During the second trimester of your pregnancy, it is very common to feel more hungry than usual.

Don’t attempt to eat extra foods like chocolates, ice creams or other fat forming foods. You need to make every calorie count by consuming a varied diet of healthy foods. Select snacks from the foods like plain yogurt, cheese, fruits, vegetables and boiled eggs.

As the days go on, you should be more aware of your baby’s movements. Even though the thumps and bumps are now noticeable to you, it takes few more weeks for someone else to feel your baby’s moves by placing their hands on your abdomen.

Largely determined by the type on antigens in blood cells,  our blood type is categorized into one of four groups: A, B, AB, or O.

Antigens (or the Rh factor) are the proteins that exist on the surface of the blood cells, and which cause a reaction from the immune system.

If antigens are present, your Rh factor will be positive, like 85% of the world; if they are not, your Rh factor will be negative.

Do you have Rh positive or Rh negative?

Have a blood test taken during your prenatal visit to determine your blood type.

If you have Rh negative and your partner has Rh positive blood, your fetus can get the Rh factor from your partner to enable it to have Rh positive. However, it can be problematic if the fetus’s blood has an Rh factor which your blood doesn’t.

Pregnancy in Rh negative mothers

Rh negative in a mother leads to the development of antibodies in the Rh positive baby. Even a small amount of your baby’s blood mixed with your blood can cause an allergic reaction in your baby.

Physical exertion may help pregnant women stop smoking, researchers said on Tuesday, after two small studies showed a quarter of women who exercised regularly while expecting a baby quit smoking.

The British scientists said the quitting rate was about the same as for people who use nicotine replacement.

“Our findings suggest that a physical activity intervention is feasible and acceptable as an aid to smoking cessation during pregnancy,” Michael Ussher and colleagues from St. George’s University of London, wrote in the journal BMC Health.

Nicotine — one of the most addictive substances known — can lead to lower birth weight, higher infant mortality and is linked to learning difficulties and health problems in childhood.

An estimated 17 percent of British women and 20 percent of women in the United States say they smoke during pregnancy, the researchers said.

Nicotine patches are one way to help smokers give up, but there are worries they may harm the fetus, leaving exercise as a healthy alternative for pregnant women, the researchers said.

The two pilot studies included women over 18 who smoked at least one cigarette a day and were 12 to 20 weeks into their pregnancy.

Zygote intrafallopian transfer or ZIFT is a reproductive procedure that is very similar to in vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer.

The only difference is that in ZIFT, the fertilized egg is transferred into the fallopian tube instead of uterus.

This procedure is also called as tubal embryo transfer because the fertilized egg is directly transferred into the fallopian tubes.

The only necessary thing to undergo this procedure is you should have healthy fallopian tubes to work Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) successfully.

Procedure of zygote intrafallopian transfer:

• During this procedure, your ovaries are first stimulated by using medications in order to boost the chance of producing several eggs.
• After this, the produced eggs are collected by using the aspiration procedure.
• Then the collected eggs are fertilized in the laboratory similar to the procedure in IVF.
• The fertilized eggs now are transferred by using laparoscopic procedure. In this procedure, the catheter is positioned deeply into the fallopian tube and then the fertilized eggs are inserted.
• The last step in ZIFT is to observe for the early symptoms of pregnancy. Your fertility practitioner uses blood test in order to confirm your pregnancy.

Not only do antibiotics not help pregnant women experiencing premature labor without ruptured membranes and no sign of infection, they may increase the risk of cerebral palsy in some children.

Two new studies followed children whose mothers had taken antibiotics at the end of their pregnancies. The children were followed up to the age of 7.

“This is a good study, because it’s a large number of patients, and it shows that the use of antibiotics do not help and are possibly harmful for preterm labor in the absence of rupture of the membrane (broken water),” said Dr. Jennifer Wu, an obstetrician/gynecologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

“There are other medications, but they really are not so effective in prolonging gestation for more than 48 hours,” Wu added. “We still do not have a great solution for preterm delivery.”

Which is not to say that all pregnant women should shun antibiotics.

“We need to reassure pregnant women that, if they have signs of infection and antibiotics are clearly indicated, then they should feel no reluctance to accept antibiotics,” said Dr. Alan Fleischman, medical director of the March of Dimes.

By pregnancy week 23, the issues like stretch marks or skin discoloration become more specific and are the causes of concern for most of the first time mothers.

Along with stretch marks, your body will experience various additional changes when preparing itself for the planned pregnancy.

What are the physical changes that occur in your body during pregnancy week 23?

Now, you will feel very difficult to find adequately comfortable sleep positions. Specially designed pregnancy pillows give you a better chance to sleep through the night.

There are various designs, but you need to buy the one which supports your belly and also a body pillow to place between the legs and under the belly to relieve from the discomfort that you experience throughout the night.

Now, you are able to observe the ripples in your abdomen whenever your baby moves. Your belly acquires the clear round shape and still you experience wild mood swings.

You can feel a squeezing sensation in your abdomen. Not to worry, your baby may be able to feel the contractions as the uterus squeezes.

If you feel the contraction more painful, more intense or frequent, then you need to contact your health care provider. All these are the signs of preterm labor.

Are you experiencing the condition of swollen ankles and feet? Usually, this condition is known as edema during pregnancy. This happens when the excess fluids collect in your tissues.

Having certain amount of swelling during pregnancy is normal as you retain more water at this time.

Also, some changes in your blood chemistry can lead to shift of the fluid into the tissues.

Also, the pressure of the growing uterus on your pelvic veins and vena cava can slow the return of blood from your legs, thus leading it to pool.

This causes the fluid from the veins to enter into the tissues of your feet and ankles.

When does edema occur in your pregnancy?

You will experience swelling at any point of pregnancy. But, the condition is noticeable around the fifth month and it can become severe during the third trimester.

Particularly, during the end of the day you will experience more swelling in your ankles and feet. The factors that trigger edema during pregnancy include:

• Diet lack of potassium
• Diet rich in sodium
• Caffeine consumption in large amounts
• Long days of activity
• Standing for longer periods