Differences among methods rely on different techniques used to extract fECG. If pure abdominal electrode configurations are used, fECG is extracted directly from the abdominal recording using independent component analysis or template subtraction. Eventually, if mixed electrode configurations are used, the fECG can be extracted using the adaptive filtering fed with the maternal ECG recorded by the electrodes located in the woman thorax or shoulder.

Although the etiology of leiomyoma is unclear, a progenitor/undifferentiated cell population has been described whose dysregulation may be involved in the onset of uterine conditions. Moreover, inflammation is involved in the development of several tumors. The aim of this work was to understand if progenitor cells sustain a chronic inflammatory microenvironment that enhances leiomyoma development. Cells from 12 human leiomyoma and 12 normal myometrium samples of the same patients were in vitro isolated and exhaustively characterized (morphology, proliferation, cytofluorometry, differentiation, RT-PCR, immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, and Western blotting assays). Selected cytokines (ELISA) and inflammation-related genes (RT-PCR) were analyzed to identify healthy myometrium progenitor cells (MPCs) and leiomyoma progenitor cells (LPCs). Results show that (i) MPCs and LPCs share stemness features, such as immunophenotype and multidifferentiation assay, (ii) LPCs have a significantly shorter doubling time and a significantly higher expression of stemness genes (p < 0.05), and (iii) LPCs secreted significantly higher levels (p < 0.05) of cytokines related to chronic inflammation and significantly lower amounts (p < 0.05) of cytokines related to acute inflammation. Despite the limited sample size, comparisons between leiomyoma and normal myometrium tissue from each patient allowed normalization of patient-specific differences. The evidenced cytokine expression pattern related to chronic inflammation in LPCs may play a role in the increased risk of adverse obstetric outcomes (infertility, spontaneous miscarriage, and preterm birth) in women affected by leiomyomas. These women should be recognized as “high risk” and subjected to specialized management both before and during pregnancy.

No abstract

The bradycardia area in the second stage of labor significantly correlates with an accurate timing of fetal acidemia. Regardless of the cause of the bradycardia, the time for intervention is often short, meaning that any available intervention may be ineffective in preventing acidemia or even injury.

The elevated NT-proBNP in preeclampsia may reflect ventricular stress and subclinical cardiac dysfunction worsening if FGR is present. This may have implications for the acute management of the preeclampsia and FGR women and for appropriately timed therapeutic interventions later in life.

No abstract

Spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB) represents the 35%-45% of all preterm birth (PTB) cases and its etiology is unknown. We investigated if the expression level of endometrial cytokines and angiogenetic factors is related to the onset of sPTB.Endometrial tissues from non-pregnant women who experienced sPTB and from non-pregnant women who did not experience sPTB were collected and examined for their expression profile. With this aim, the PCR Array analysis was performed and data were confirmed by Real-Time PCR. Differential gene expression measurements (pathological vs control tissues) showed a significant up-regulation for genes codifying for two angiogenetic factors known as connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), and coagulation factor III (F3). An increased level of expression was detected both for tyrosine kinase endothelial (TEK) and for transforming growth factor beta 2 (TGF-β2) genes but without reaching the statistical significance. The expression level of interleukin 10 receptor alpha (IL10RA) gene was slightly decreased in pathological group compared to control one but, as well as forTEK and TGF-β2 measurements, without reaching the statistical significance. Our work is the first to correlate the imbalance in endometrial district of non -pregnant women with sPTB. These data could suggest a new point of view whence to read sPTB. We need additional clinical and biological studies to clarify sPTB pathogenesis.

The main prognostic feature associated with a poor outcome of umbilical vein aneurysm seems to be the presence of other anomalies. Early diagnosis is associated with a somewhat worse prognosis, and most fetal deaths have been observed between 27 and 30 weeks of gestation. In the third trimester, it is reasonable to perform serial ultrasound examinations to assess fetal growth, the size of the aneurysm, and the blood flow pattern within the aneurysm.