Summary. A total of 506 women at moderate risk of preterm delivery were randomly allocated to either cervical cerclage or a control group. Significantly more women in the group allocated to cerclage were admitted to hospital for reasons other than the operation and more received oral toco‐lytic drugs. There were also more caesarean sections and more preterm deliveries in the women allocated to cerclage although the differences between the two groups were small and not statistically significant.
The aim of this study was to determine the elements of fatigue in occupations which constitute possible risk factors for the course of a pregnancy, and, in particular, that could cause premature birth. In 1977-1978, a total of 3437 women in France were surveyed after giving birth in two maternity hospitals. One hospital was located in Lyon (a large city) and the other in Haguenau (a small town). Among 1928 working women, it was found that certain occupational categories are more prone to risk of prematurity than others. The authors carried out an analytical breakdown of the job into its diverse components which led them to define five sources of fatigue and to construct an index capable of detecting the strenuous working conditions. There is a significant relationship between the prematurity rate and the number of high fatigue scores observed in the job. When the number of scores varies from 0 to 5 the rate of premature births increases from 2.3% to 11.1%. This relationship remains significant after controlling for confounding factors.
Epidemiologic studies, retrospective and prospective, were done on 1500 abortions collected from 1966-1972. No secular or seasonal variations were observed. From the analysis of the relative frequencies of the different types of chromsome anomalies it is estimated that 1 out of every 2 conceptions has a chromosome anomaly. Maternal-age influence was found only for the autosomal trisomy group, mainly D and G trisomies. No effect of oral contraceptives were discovered. An increased frequency of chromosome anomalies occurred after ovulation-inducing therapy and after occupational exposure of the father to irradiation. No variations in the fertility rate and in the frequency of congenital malformations in births following abortions was noted. The incidence of recurring abortion was mainly influenced by the reproductive history of the couple before the karyotyped abortion.
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