Objective To explore whether quarantine measures and hospital containment policies among women giving birth in a COVID‐19 “hotspot” area in northeastern Italy enhanced psycho‐emotional distress in the immediate postpartum period. Methods We designed a non‐concurrent case–control study of mothers who gave birth during a COVID‐19 quarantine period between March 8 and May 3, 2020 (COVID‐19 study group), with an antecedent group of matched postpartum women (control group) who delivered in the same period in 2019. Participants completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) on the second day postpartum. Results The COVID‐19 study group (n=91) had significantly higher mean EPDS scores compared with the control group (n=101) (8.5 ± 4.6 vs 6.34 ± 4.1; P<0.001). Furthermore, 28.6% of women in the COVID‐19 group had a global EPDS score above 12. Analysis of three EPDS subscales revealed significantly higher scores among the COVID‐19 group compared with the control group for anhedonia (0.60 ± 0.61 vs 0.19 ± 0.36; P<0.001) and depression (0.58 ± 0.54 vs 0.35 ± 0.45; P=0.001). Conclusions Concerns about risk of exposure to COVID‐19, combined with quarantine measures adopted during the COVID‐19 pandemic, adversely affected the thoughts and emotions of new mothers, worsening depressive symptoms.

Infection with herpes simplex is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections. Because the infection is common in women of reproductive age it can be contracted and transmitted to the fetus during pregnancy and the newborn. Herpes simplex virus is an important cause of neonatal infection, which can lead to death or long-term disabilities. Rarely in the uterus, it occurs frequently during the transmission delivery. The greatest risk of transmission to the fetus and the newborn occurs in case of an initial maternal infection contracted in the second half of pregnancy. The risk of transmission of maternal-fetal-neonatal herpes simplex can be decreased by performing a treatment with antiviral drugs or resorting to a caesarean section in some specific cases. The purpose of this paper is to provide recommendations on management of herpes simplex infections in pregnancy and strategies to prevent transmission from mother to fetus.

Congenital syphilis is still a cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Untreated maternal infection leads to adverse pregnancy outcomes, including early fetal loss, stillbirth, prematurity, low birth weight, neonatal and infant death, and congenital disease among newborns. Clinical manifestations of congenital syphilis are influenced by gestational age, stage of maternal syphilis, maternal treatment, and immunological response of the fetus. It has been traditionally classified in early congenital syphilis and late congenital syphilis. Diagnosis of maternal infection is based on clinical findings, serological tests, and direct identification of treponemes in clinical specimens. Adequate treatment of maternal infection is effective for preventing maternal transmission to the fetus and for treating fetal infection. Prenatal diagnosis of congenital syphilis includes noninvasive and invasive diagnosis. Serological screening during pregnancy and during preconception period should be performed to reduce the incidence of congenital syphilis.

No abstract

It has been widely reported that prenatal exposure to ionizing radiation can interfere with embryonic and fetal development, depending on dose and gestational age in which exposure occurs. According to several studies on animal models, different well-defined stages during prenatal life can be distinguished in relation to teratogenic effects. During the preimplantation stage, elevated doses of radiation can result in abortion, while lower doses may produce genomic damage that is usually repaired. On the other hand, during the organogenesis stage in mice (embryonic day 6.5 [E6.5] to E13.5), irradiation is associated with increased incidence of malformation and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Later exposure is linked to brain damage. Doses used in animal studies are generally higher than those used for diagnostic procedures in humans. Usually, radiation exposure to diagnostic range (<0.05 Gy = 5 rads) is not associated with an increased risk of congenital anomalies. In human studies, elevated doses produce adverse outcomes, depending on stage of development, as in animal studies. Blastogenesis (up to two weeks) is associated with failure to implant or no significant health effects. An increased risk of malformation and growth retardation can be observed for two to seven weeks exposure (organogenesis stage), while exposure at later stages (fetogenesis) is mainly associated with brain damage. In this review we focus on the relevance of estimating the cumulative dose of radiation to the fetus and the gestational age in which exposure occurs, to provide appropriate counseling to pregnant women.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract