Serum 25(OH)D levels are significantly associated with pulmonary function in CF. Further study is required to determine whether this association is causal.
BackgroundSeveral techniques of emergency vaginal cerclage have been proposed in case of unexpected and abrupt cervical incompetence (CI), in order to prolong the pregnancy as much as possible and to reduce the adverse maternal-fetal outcomes. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of emergency cervical cerclage, performed with the combined modified Shirodkar-McDonald technique.MethodsWe selected 12 cases of emergency vaginal cerclage, performed between January 1, 2008 and June 30, 2013. The age of the patients was between 20 and 38 years (mean 29.0 ± standard deviation (SD) 5.69), parity between 0 and 2 (mean 0.7 ± SD 0.65), and gestational age at the time of admission ranged between 17 and 26 weeks (mean 21.0 ± SD 3.44). In all these cases, we used a combined modified Shirodkar-McDonald technique to perform the procedure.ResultsThe neonatal survival rate was 83.3%. The cesarean section rate was 16.7%. The average pregnancy prolongation was 89.9 days, higher than that reported for other studies in the literature.ConclusionsWe can assume that the emergency vaginal cerclage performed with the combined modified Shirodkar-McDonald technique is the best option of surgical therapy for the treatment of unexpected and abrupt CI.
Obesity is associated with an increased risk of an adverse pregnancy outcome. The aim of this study was to analyze the serum levels of high mobility group protein B1 (HMGB1) in obese pregnant women, to assess the role of this protein in the pathogenesis of this disease and to evaluate its possible function as a diagnostic marker for obesity-related complications in obese women. Study participants were randomly selected, from a cohort of pregnant women afferent to our department. A total of 120 women were enrolled in this study: 60 pregnant women had normal body mass index (BMI) and 60 women resulted obese. Pre-pregnancy BMI, weight increase and HMGB1 levels were evaluated for each pregnant woman enrolled. Matching serum HMGB1 levels in two groups, our data evidenced higher levels in the obese women, with a statistically significant difference (p = 0.0023). A significant positive univariate correlation was observed between serum HMGB1 levels and BMI in obese women. HMGB1 serum levels may therefore represent a predictive marker of disease in pregnant women (r = 20.9 and p = 0.0001). Further studies are needed in order to validate the role of this cytokine, with the aim of making it possible to use in clinical practice not only for diagnostic purposes, but especially for the early recognition of complications related to it.
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