Although acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is rare in women of child-bearing age, pregnancy can increase a woman’s risk of heart attack 3- to 4-fold, according to a study published in the July 15, 2008, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Since women today may delay having children until later in life, and advances in reproductive medicine enable older women to conceive, the occurrence of AMI associated with pregnancy is expected to increase.

“It’s extremely important that physicians who take care of women during pregnancy and after delivery be aware of the occasional occurrence of AMI in pregnancy and not overlook symptoms in these young patients,” said Dr.

Elkayam, who is a professor of Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynecology at USC.

“Although many of the standard principles for diagnosing and treating AMI in non-pregnant patients also apply to pregnant women, two patients need to be treated–the mother and her baby–and the health status of both should play a major role in the selection of diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.”

Some of the standard diagnostic tests and medications (e.g., ACE inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) and warfarin) used to manage AMI can be harmful to the baby, whether in the womb or through breastfeeding; therefore, their use should take into account potential risks and benefits.

Dilation and curettage is the procedure, also called as D&C. D means dilation, which is enlarging and C means curettage, which means scrapping.

Mainly, this procedure consists of enlarging or expanding the entrance of the uterus to insert the sharp instrument in order to take out the tissue samples.

This is a regularly used procedure and is considered as safe. This is a therapeutic gynecological procedure and also a rarely used procedure in first trimester abortion. This is an adjunct procedure to hysteroscopy and polypectomy.

Dilation and curettage procedure:

The first and the main step in dilation and curettage procedure is to dilate the cervix. Usually, this is performed a few hours before the surgery. Before the procedure, you are administered with general anesthesia.

After this, a metal rod with one handle on one end and with a sharp loop on the other end is inserted into your uterus through the dilated cervix. Generally, the curette is used to smoothly scrape the lining of the uterus and remove the tissues from uterus. This tissue is examined for completeness in the case of miscarriage or abortion treatment or for detecting any other abnormalities.

Various things happened in your life for the last 12 weeks. Till now you got relief from the conditions like nausea and morning sickness. Week 12 is also full of various changes in you and your baby.

What are the physical changes that occur in your body during pregnancy week 12?

Your uterus grows in size along with the growth of your baby. By this week, the flat and relatively small uterus is stretched to the size of soft ball i.e. up to 12-14 cm. This is a very small change. At the time of your delivery, the uterus stretches up to 15-17 inches.

The size of the uterus will grow slowly i.e. one centimeter per week. With this growth, the uterus shifts up and forward as it increases in size.

Generally, 11-12 weeks is the right time to share your pregnancy with others.

You will notice lot of skin changes during this week. If you have lot of freckles during your pregnancy, then they will become dark after pregnancy week 12. The skin surrounding the areolas and nipples will become darker.

A low level of hemoglobin during pregnancy leads to anemia. This is very common during pregnancy and is present in almost 80% of the pregnant women.

During pregnancy, there is an increase in blood volume and a moderate decrease in the concentration of red blood cells and a normal hemoglobin level.

The percentage of red blood cells relative to plasma value in a non pregnant woman ranges from 38-45%. In a normal pregnant woman, the percentage of red blood cells is 34% and in a twin or multiple pregnancies, it is 30% even if you have normal levels of iron, folic acid and vitamin B12.

These lower levels of red blood cells indicate the psychological hemodilution of pregnancy and it does not indicate a decrease in oxygen carrying capacity or true anemia. 90% of cases of anemia during pregnancy are mainly due to low iron levels.

Possible causes which lead to anemia during pregnancy include:

• Insufficient consumption of iron in your diet
• Deficiency of folic acid
• Gastrointestinal bleeding
• Loss of blood from bleeding hemorrhoids

Even if you consume sufficient amounts of iron and folic acid; you may become anemic because of the great alteration of your digestive process in pregnancy.

Mothers who eat an unhealthy diet during pregnancy may be putting their children at risk of developing long term, irreversible health issues including obesity, raised levels of cholesterol and blood sugar, according to new research.

The offspring of the mothers fed junk food diets had raised levels of cholesterol as well as higher levels of triglycerides, a type of fat found in the bloodstream.

Both are known to increase the risk of developing heart disease. Similarly, the offspring had higher levels of glucose and insulin, both of which increase the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes.

“It seems that a mother’s diet whilst pregnant and breastfeeding is very important for the long term health of her child,” says Dr Bayol.

A 2007 US study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology showed that the more weight that pregnant women put on, the higher the risk that the child would be obese children. A 2005 British Medical Journal study also showed a correlation between parental and child weight.

One surprising find from the study was how the maternal diet disrupted the offspring’s metabolism: male offspring whose mothers had gorged on junk food had higher levels of insulin and normal levels of glucose, whilst the opposite was true for female offspring, who also tended to be fatter.

It is amazing to hear that our body is built for natural childbirth.

You can give birth to your baby without any medical intervention.

Most of the women prefer to give birth to their child without using any medications.

Giving birth naturally is the best choice for mom and her baby. It is a low-tech way of giving birth to a baby. Natural childbirth involves, going through the labor and delivery without taking any medications along with pain relievers, like epidural [Epidural for labor pains].

If you are having low-risk pregnancy then you can choose the natural way to avoid the side effects of the medications on you and your baby.

Medications used for pain may affect your labor; blood pressure can drop suddenly, fluctuations in your labor i.e. sudden rise and sudden fall, feeling nauseous, feeling somewhat confusing and out of control.

But, natural childbirth is a great choice for many women as they can feel more in touch with the birth experience and also to deal with the labor in a more proactive manner.

There are many benefits associated with natural childbirth, but you must be an active participant throughout your labor. With proper support and preparation, you will feel very much satisfied and empowered by natural childbirth.

Low birth weight and preterm delivery increase the likelihood that a child will be autistic, with girls being at particular risk, researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

“Pediatricians are probably sensitive to the fact that low birth weight children or children born too soon have special developmental needs,” researcher Dr. Diana Schendel of the CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, told Reuters Health.

“This study simply supports that they should not overlook the behavioral aspects of development.”

She noted that while boys far outnumber girls in the general population of children with autism, physicians “may need to be aware that they will see more equal numbers of boys and girls” with autism among low birth weight and preterm children, based on the current findings.

The researchers found that among low-birth-weight and preterm children, autism was less common than other developmental disabilities, such as cerebral palsy and hearing or vision loss.

However, children born weighing less than 2,500 grams — or roughly 5.5 pounds — had about twice the risk of autism as those with a normal birth weight. Similarly, children born before the 33rd week of pregnancy were twice as likely to develop the disorder as those born at full-term.

As you approach towards the end of first trimester of the pregnancy, for most of you, your pregnancy begins to appear. This is the right time to inform others about the good news particularly in professional circle.

During this week, various changes are observed in you and your baby’s body.

What are the physical changes that occur in your body during pregnancy week 11?

If you still experience morning sickness, this comes to an end by the end of this week. Growing placenta along with your baby’s growing pituitary gland gives you a break on the production of hormones by this week.

Now the focus is on the beginning of second trimester of pregnancy. The second trimester is most appropriately characterized by plenty of growth for both you and your little one.

By the end of this week, your uterus will rise above the pelvic bones; your doctor can recognize it with an external examination. A vertical dark line of pigmentation called as linea-nigra, which comes from your naval down to your pubic hair will appear shortly.

Care you need to take during pregnancy week 11:

According to the research, severe emotional stress during pregnancy can cause abnormalities in your unborn child.

The frequency of malformations is twice among stressful pregnancies when compared with normal pregnancy.

A pregnant woman who is experiencing stressful events in two successive pregnancies is particularly at greater risk. Stress during pregnancy not only affects the gender of your child, but also your baby’s future health.

The reasons behind experiencing stress during pregnancy are many, such as emotional or physical abuse, break-up of marriage relationship, disinterested or uninvolved partner and open infidelity.

Women who experience these types of situations can face highly stressful circumstances. They face loneliness, constant stress, clinical depression, shame and loneliness during or after the birth.

Stress encourages a pregnant woman to drink alcohol thus consuming less healthy diet.

Effects of stress during pregnancy on your baby:

• Mothers who experience stress have a possibility to expose their children to highly stressful hormones, malnutrition and toxins inside their womb.
• The hormone released with stress during pregnancy is cartisone. This hormone leads to raised blood sugar levels and a decrease in the supply of oxygen to the tissues. Both of these conditions can cause birth defects.

Women who worked hard to climb the corporate ladder worry the boss will put them on the “mummy track,” giving them less-challenging projects.

This is of particular concern to women who are on a partnership track and need to demonstrate certain skills to advance.

Others fear their manager will work them extra hard so they can do as much as possible before taking maternity leave.

But you can’t keep your pregnancy a secret forever, and it’s best to start planning early how you’ll transition to maternity leave. Most experts suggest telling the boss your news after the first trimester, a time when the risk for a miscarriage greatly decreases.

The only time to tell the boss sooner would be if you’re experiencing a difficult pregnancy or severe morning sickness, and need to take time off from work. No matter what, tell the boss before other colleagues–it’s a sign of respect.

Once you inform the boss, meet with human resources to discuss how much maternity leave your state and company offers and what portion of the leave is paid. Each state provides different leave plans. It’s also a good time to re-read the company handbook, since it provides information on the firm’s policies.