Similar to adults, IUD use in adolescents and nulliparous women is effective and associated with low rates of serious complications. Health practitioners should therefore consider IUDs for contraception in all females. Teenagers and young women are more likely to request premature discontinuation of their IUDs and may benefit from additional counseling.

Background and Objectives:Robotic surgery has introduced unique challenges to surgical workflow. The association between quality of communication in robotic-assisted laparoscopic surgery and surgical outcomes was evaluated.Methods:After each gynecologic robotic surgery, the team members involved in the surgery completed a survey regarding the quality of communication. A composite quality-of-communication score was developed using principal component analysis. A higher composite quality-of-communication score signified poor communication.Objective parameters, such as operative time and estimated blood loss (EBL), were gathered from the patient's medical record and correlated with the composite quality-of-communication scores.Results:Forty robotic cases from March through May 2013 were included. Thirty-two participants including surgeons, circulating nurses, and surgical technicians participated in the study. A higher composite quality-of-communication score was associated with greater EBL (P = .010) and longer operative time (P = .045), after adjustment for body mass index, prior major abdominal surgery, and uterine weight. Specifically, for every 1-SD increase in the perceived lack of communication, there was an additional 51 mL EBL and a 31-min increase in operative time. The most common reasons reported for poor communication in the operating room were noise level (28/36, 78%) and console-to-bedside communication problems (23/36, 64%).Conclusion:Our study demonstrates a significant association between poor intraoperative team communication and worse surgical outcomes in robotic gynecologic surgery. Employing strategies to decrease extraneous room noise, improve console-to-bedside communication and team training may have a positive impact on communication and related surgical outcomes.

Preterm birth continues to be the leading cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. A wide range of tocolytics have been utilized for the management of preterm labor. Calcium channel blockers, namely nifedipine, gained popularity as tocolytics due to the oral route of administration, availability of immediate- and slow-release preparations, the low incidence of maternal adverse effects associated with their use, and the fact that they are inexpensive. This article reviews the available literature on the clinical utility of calcium channel blockers for acute and maintenance tocolysis with special emphasis on potential adverse effects, the most appropriate dose/regimen, and contemporary practice patterns among obstetricians. There are no randomized, placebo-controlled studies demonstrating the benefit of nifedipine in preterm labor. A suggested tocolytic protocol would be to start with the lowest dose of oral immediate-release nifedipine. For the first 48 hours thereafter, all attempts should be made not to exceed 60-mg daily doses.

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Introduction. We identified risk factors for trachelectomy after supracervical hysterectomy (SCH) due to persistence of symptoms. Material and methods. A retrospective case-control study in a university-affiliated hospital. Seventeen women who underwent a trachelectomy following SCH for nonmalignant indications between June 2002 and October 2014 were compared with 68 randomly selected women (controls) who underwent a SCH within the same time period. Demographics and clinical characteristics were compared between the study and control groups. Univariate analysis identified potential risk factors for trachelectomy following SCH. Univariate logistic regression models predicted which patients would have a trachelectomy following SCH. Results. The occurrence of trachelectomy following SCH during the study period was 0.9% (17/1892). The study group was younger than the control group (mean age 38 AE 6 years vs. 44 AE 5 years; p < 0.001). Patients who had a history of endometriosis [odds ratio (OR) 6.23, 95% CI 1.11-40.5, p = 0.038] had increased risk for trachelectomy. Pathology diagnosed endometriosis only among women in the study group. Preoperative diagnosis of abnormal uterine bleeding (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.06-0.075, p = 0.016), anemia (OR 0.12, 95% CI 0.01-0.53; p = 0.003), and fibroid uterus (OR 0.24, 95% CI 0.07-0.82, p = 0.024) reduced the risk for future trachelectomy. Conclusion. Young age and endometriosis are significant risk factors for trachelectomy following SCH.

Background Robotic surgery presents a challenge to effective teamwork and communication in the operating theatre (OR). Our objective was to evaluate the effect of using a wireless audio headset device on communication, efficiency and patient outcome in robotic surgery. Methods and findings A prospective controlled trial of team members participating in gynecologic and urologic robotic procedures between January and March 2015. In the first phase, all surgeries were performed without headsets (control), followed by the intervention phase where all team members used the wireless headsets. Noise levels were measured during both phases. After each case, all team members evaluated the quality of communication, performance, teamwork and mental load using a validated 14-point questionnaire graded on a 1-10 scale. Higher overall scores indicated better communication and efficiency. Clinical and surgical data of all patients in the study were retrieved, analyzed and correlated with the survey results. The study included 137 procedures, yielding 843 questionnaires with an overall response rate of 89% (843/943). Self-reported communication quality was better in cases where headsets were used (113.0 ± 1.6 vs. 101.4 ± 1.6; p < .001). Use of headsets reduced the percentage of time with a noise level above 70 dB at the console (8.2% ± 0.6 vs. 5.3% ± 0.6, p < .001), but had no significant effect on length of surgery nor postoperative complications. Conclusions The use of wireless headset devices improved quality of communication between team members and reduced the peak noise level in the robotic OR.

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(Abstracted from Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand 2017;96:421–425) Advocates of supracervical hysterectomy (SCH) hypothesized that removing the entire cervix may diminish sexual response, urinary function, and pelvic support, as well as increase operative time and complications. Several studies, however, have failed to find benefit from retention of the cervical stump at hysterectomy.