In healthy nulliparous women, adopting a squatting position using bars was associated with a shorter second stage of labor, lower Visual Analog Scale score, more satisfaction, and a reduction in oxytocin requirements compared with adopting the supine position. For Turkish women, the squatting position is easy to adopt as it is more appropriate in terms of Turkish social habits and traditions.

The study provides normal ranges of NBL between 16 and 23 weeks of pregnancy in a low-risk Turkish population. Future studies with larger sample sizes including pregnancies carrying high risk for aneuploidy are needed to define cut-off values for NBL.

Objectives: The effect of exogenous progesterone on fetal nuchal translucency (NT) has been proposed recently. In this study, we aimed to compare the thickness of NT of patients receiving and not receiving progesterone for threatened miscarriage. Material and methods:This study was designed as a retrospective comparative study. Ninety five women treated with progesterone constituted the study group whereas 97 women who were not treated with progesterone constituted the control group. An ultrasonographic examination was performed on all of the women to measure NT. All patients were treated with oral micronized progesterone in the study group. The main parameters recorded for each woman were; age, body mass index (BMI), obstetrical characteristics, and gestational age at first examination, treatment duration of progesterone therapy, and results of combined and triple tests.Results: A total of 192 pregnant women with threatened miscarriage were included in this study. The mean NT thickness was statistically significantly higher in the study group (p < 0.001), and mean serum level of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) was also higher in this group (p < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference between groups in terms of age, BMI, and gestational age at first examination. ROC curve analysis demonstrated that only increased NT (area under the curve: 0.634, p = 0.005, 95% CI: 0.541-0.727) was a discriminative factor for women receiving progesterone for threatened miscarriage. Also there was a positive correlation between NT and treatment duration (r = 0.269; p < 0.001). Conclusions:We think that oral progesterone therapy may increase NT depending on treatment duration without causing abnormal prenatal screening test results.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to assess the usefulness of various tumor markers (CA125, HE4, bcl2) measured in serum, urine and saliva in the differential diagnosis of adnexal masses. Material and methods:Our study was conducted at the Başkent University Medical School, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ankara, Turkey, between November 2010 and March 2011. Fifty patients with a suspicion of malignant adnexal mass and 30 controls were included in the study. Serum and urine CA-125, HE4, and bcl2 levels were evaluated for their role in the diagnosis of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC).Results: Serum CA-125 and HE4 levels, and urine HE4 levels were significantly higher in malignant cases as compared to controls (p < 0.05). Mean levels of bcl2 in saliva and urine were similar in malignant cases and controls (p > 0.05). Conclusions:We demonstrated that serum CA125, serum HE4 and urine HE4 levels were elevated in patients with ovarian cancer. These findings should be assessed in future studies with larger sample sizes in order to reach more definite conclusions.

ObjectiveWe investigated whether the ultrasonographic measurement of maternal subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) thickness in the second trimester played a role in predicting gestational diabetes.Materials and methodsThis was a prospective cross-sectional study in which 223 women were classified as healthy (n = 177) or as gestational diabetes (n = 46) on the basis of a negative or positive two-step oral Glucose Challenge Test (GCT), respectively. The depth of the abdominal SAT was evaluated by two-dimensional ultrasonography. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist/hip ratio were determined.ResultsThere was a positive strong significant correlation between a 50-g GCT level and BMI, WC, and SAT thickness (p < 0.001). Receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis showed SAT thickness above 16.75 mm predicted gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) with a sensitivity of 71.7%, a specificity of 57.1%, a positive predictive value of 32.3%, and a negative predictive value of 87.6%. There was a good correlation between SAT, BMI, and WC.ConclusionIncreased SAT, BMI, and WC measurements may be helpful in predicting the risk of the development of GDM in pregnant women.

For the prediction of preterm labor/PPROM, the relatively high AGEs levels in the first trimester might be a useful marker.

Mucinous cysts are benign, are cystic lesions that can be encountered in vulvar region and filled with mucin. The majority of these cysts are small and asymptomatic. However, occasionally they may reach unusually large sizes, and may become pedunculated. Here, we report a case of vulvar mucinous cyst which was unusually large and pedunculated treated via complete excision.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a triplet pregnancy complicated by cervical clear cell carcinoma that was successfully treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and cesarean radical hysterectomy. Our experience and literature review suggest that neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical carcinoma diagnosed during pregnancy is associated with excellent oncologic and fetal outcome; therefore, it may be considered as a temporary fertility-sparing approach in selected patients with a strong desire for full-term pregnancy. Nonetheless, additional research and long-term follow-up are needed to reach a more definitive conclusion.