New pregnancy medical centre model could mean better outcomes

A new “pregnancy medical centre” model of care could lead to improved outcomes for pregnant women and their babies, new research has suggested. The proposed model could also lead to significant cost savings as women benefit from shorter hospital stays and fewer emergency visits, according to the new study. The study was presented last month at the Society for Maternal-Fetal…

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Fetal alcohol syndrome ‘unacceptably high’

There are unacceptably high global prevalence rates of alcohol use in pregnancy and fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), with rates highest in Europe, a new study has concluded. The research, published in The Lancet Global Health, provides the first-ever estimates of the proportion of women who drink during pregnancy. The study found that on average, almost 10 per cent of women…

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Empowering women with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) to make pregnancy decisions

Becoming a mother can be a daunting prospect in the best of circumstances, but contemplating motherhood as an RA sufferer brings its own set of problems, with a multitude of issues to consider. Of particular concern is the need for accurate information on medication safety. Some RA treatments are known to cause birth defects, whilst others could potentially interfere with…

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Taking supplements while pregnant: Is there enough safety data?

“We often get calls on our hotlines from patients who are taking very large doses of supplements, mostly in the mistaken belief that more is better,” says Beth Conover, a pediatric nurse practitioner and director of Nebraska MotherToBaby, an information service about medication exposure during pregnancy. “I don’t think women receive enough information about supplement use in pregnancy.” Conover’s comments…

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General surgery safe for pregnant women, study concludes

Being pregnant doesn’t increase the risks associated with general surgery, suggests a new study. But will these findings make some headway in clearing up the long-standing debate over the safety of undergoing general surgical operations while pregnant? Until now, studies have yielded conflicting results; sometimes suggesting that there is an increased chance of maternal illness or death. “Pregnant patients undergoing emergency…

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Lacking an alternative, doctors are prescribing opioid-based drugs for pregnant women in pain

Research published in May 2014 revealed considerable numbers of expectant mothers are taking opioid painkillers. Just overa fifth of the 1.1 million pregnant women enrolled in the US social healthcare program Medicaid received a prescription for these drugs in 2007. These figures represent an 18.5% increase overthe number of prescriptions of opioids dispensed to pregnant women back in 2000. However,…

Read more > Lacking an alternative, doctors are prescribing opioid-based drugs for pregnant women in pain

Low doses of aspirin could help some women conceive

Questions surrounding drug use and pregnancy don’t start just when a woman is expecting a child. There are also healthcare professionals and academics thinking about treatment at an earlier stage: how medication can affect the chance of a woman conceiving. In April 2014, one group of scientists published research on how regular low-dose aspirin affects a woman’s chance to get…

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