OBJECTIVE: To evaluate perinatal outcomes in high risk pregnancy fifty-four women who were delivered of small for gestational age infants were studied antenatally by serially umbilical artery doppler velocimetry in our unit. Five study subjects with loss of end diastolic velocities were excepted. METHODS: Forty-nine study subjects were separated with normal (group I, 12 subjects) and abnormal (group II, 37 subjects) systolic/diastolic (A/B) ratio of umbilical artery. Perinatal outcomes were compared with normal and abnormal group. Fisher's exact test and student t test were used for statistical analysis RESULTS: The group with an abnormal A/B ratio had a signifiamtly higher incidence cesarean section for fetal distress, admission into the neonatal intensive care unit, perinatal death, and adverse perinatal outcome. these data suggest that small for gestational age fetus with normal ratio is at significantly lower risk than are those with abnonnal ratio. CONCLUSION: An abnormal Doppler umbilical artery A/B ratio is a strong predictor of adverse perinatal outcome in small-for-gestational-age-fetuses.
Cesarean Section ; Female ; Fetal Distress ; Fetus* ; Gestational Age* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, High-Risk ; Rheology* ; Umbilical Arteries*

No abstract available.
Leiomyoma*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical impact of absent or reversed end-diastolic (ARED) umbilical artery flow detected before the 34th week of pregnancy in high-risk pregnancies. METHODS: Fifty-eight singleton pregnant women with high-risk factors were included in this retrospective study. Based on the umbilical artery Doppler finding, pregnant women were divided into 3 groups: group 1 (12 subjects) with normal Doppler systolic/diastolic (S/D) ratios; group 2 (30 subjects) with significant abnormal umbilical artery S/D ratios, and group 3 (16 subjects) with ARED flow in the umbilical artery between the 25+0 and 33+6 gestational weeks. Incidence of intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) and pregnancy-induced hypertension, detection week, diagnosis-to-delivery interval, birth weight and gestational ages at delivery, Apgar scores, emergency cesarean section, neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission, admission-to-discharge interval, perinatal mortality (PNM) and morbidity, and neonatal morbidity were registered. Perinatal outcomes were assessed. The data was analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U-test and X-square test. A significant difference was considered present if p was<0.05. RESULTS: The PNM in group 3 in the study was 25% (4/16). Sixteen had ARED flow. Our study shows that fetuses with ARED flow tend to be more severely growth-retarded. Our results also show ARED flow to be associated with poor perinatal outcome. There was a higher incidence of cesarean section for fetal distress, neonatal intensive care unit admission, and lower Apgar scores. Birth weight and gestational age at delivery were lower. The diagnosis-to-delivery interval was shorter. The admission-to-discharge interval was longer. CONCLUSION: An early ARED finding before the 34th week in the umbilical artery is a very serious sign of likely fetal compromise. The perinatal mortality and morbidity rate were high, and there was evidence of acute or chronic hypoxia in most fetuses. It is an indication that extremely careful surveillance should be followed but not necessarily an indication for an emergency delivery.
Anoxia ; Birth Weight ; Cesarean Section ; Emergencies ; Female ; Fetal Distress ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Fetus ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Perinatal Mortality ; Pregnancy* ; Pregnancy, High-Risk ; Pregnant Women ; Retrospective Studies ; Umbilical Arteries*

No abstract available.
Arteriovenous Malformations* ; Uterus*

No abstract available.
Arteriovenous Malformations* ; Uterus*

No abstract available.
Drug Therapy* ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms*

OBJECTIVES: To determine the change in cervical length after cerclage and whether a transvaginal ultrasonographic measurement about change in cervical lengthening after cerclage is predictive of term delivery METHODS: Twenty-nine single pregnant women were suspected as cervical incompetence by using a serial transvaginal ultrasonography. When a shortening of the cervix was substantial before 25 weeks' gestation, a therapeuric McDonald cerclage was applied. The 29 pregnant women had a transvaginal ultrasonographic measurement of the cervix within 48-72 hours before and after cerclage. At each examination, the first measurement was discarded, and the mean of the subsequent three measurements was calculated. Statistical analysis was performed by use of SAS with the significance set at the 5% level. RESULTS: In the 29 single pregnancies examined, the mean cervical length (distance between internal os and external os) before cerclage was 30.0+/-4.5 mm. A cerclage was applied at the mean gestational age of 16.76+/-3.02 weeks. After the cerclage the mean cervical length increased significantly (r=0.895, p=0.0001) to 34.1+/-4.5 mm. There was a significant relation between the gestational age at delivery and the length of postoperative upper cervix (endocervical canal length above suture) (r=0.378, p=0.043). But there was no significant relation between the gestational age at delivery and the following measurements; preoperative cervical length (r=0.348, p=0.064), postoperative cervical length (r=0.279, p=0.143), cervical lengthening (postoperative cervical length - preoperative cervical length) (r=-0.156, p=0.420), length of postoperative lower cervix (endocervical canal length below suture) (r=-0.003, p=0.999). CONCLUSION: Therapeutic McDonald cerclage results in a longer cervical length as measured by transvaginal ultrasonography. The increase in cervical length after cerclage is not a predictive term delivery. But the Length in upper cervix after cerclage correlated with gestational weeks at delivery.
Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Pregnant Women ; Ultrasonography*

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the indications, clinical features, cytogenetic results and complications of amniocentesis and to determine the efficacy of antenatal genetic amniocentesis. METHODS: We analyzed retrospectively maternal age, gestational age, indications, transplacental puncture, frequency, discoloration of amniotic fluid, karyotype and complications in 325 cases of prenatal genetic amniocentesis performed at Chungnam National University Hospital from January 2000 to December 2002. RESULTS: The most common age group was from 30 to 34 (31.4%) and mean age was 32.7 years old. 85.3% of cases were performed at 16th-20th gestational weeks. Abnormal maternal serum markers were the most common indication of amniocentesis (56.0%) and the second most common indication was maternal age over 35 (33.2%). Abnormal karyotypes were found in 12 cases (3.6%) and normal variants were 21 cases (6.5%). Numerical aberration were 9 cases (2.7%) and structural aberration were 3 cases (0.3%). Among the autosomal aberrations, Down syndromes were 5 cases and Edward syndrome was 1 case. Among the sex chromosomal aberrations, 47,XXX were 2 cases and Turner syndrome was 1 case. As the increasing maternal age, the incidence of abnormal karyotype was increased. Procedure-related complications occurred in 11.7% of cases and fetal loss rate was 7.4%. No significant associations were found between procedure-related complications and maternal age, gestational age, transplacental puncture, frequency, discoloration of amniotic fluid, and antibiotic treatment. CONCLUSION: Amniocentesis is useful for prenatal genetic diagnosis in pregnancies with increasing risk of chromosome aberrations, such as advanced maternal age, abnormal maternal serum markers or abnormal US findings. Further studies are necessary to identify risk factors of complications after invasive procedure.
Abnormal Karyotype ; Amniocentesis* ; Amniotic Fluid ; Biomarkers ; Chromosome Aberrations ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Cytogenetic Analysis* ; Cytogenetics* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Incidence ; Karyotype ; Maternal Age ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Second* ; Punctures ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Turner Syndrome

A 34-year-old female underwent emergency cesarean section with general anesthesia. The patient was a para 1-0-0-1, referred at 39 weeks in labor with known severe aortic stenosis due to a bicuspid aortic valve. She has been treated with digoxin and furosemide for 5 years. At first, she tried a normal spontaneous vaginal delivery, but dyspnea was aggravated during delivery, so an emergency operation was decided. Anesthesia was induced using ketamine 80 mg, fentanyl 50 microgram and vecuronium 6 mg and maintained with 50% nitrous oxide in oxygen. After fetal delivery and infusion of oxytocin, the systolic blood pressure decreased to 60 mmHg or less, so we injected phenylephrine 100 microgram bolus. However, the blood pressure did not increase, so we injected phenylephrine continuously ( 0.5 microgram/kg/ min). One month postpartum, echocardiography was done. The left ventricle-aortic pressure gradient was 140 mmHg, so the cardiologist recommended an aortic valve replacement operation. She refused the operation and has been medicated with digoxin and furosemide up to date.
Adult ; Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General* ; Aortic Valve ; Aortic Valve Stenosis* ; Bicuspid ; Blood Pressure ; Cesarean Section* ; Digoxin ; Dyspnea ; Echocardiography ; Emergencies* ; Female ; Fentanyl ; Furosemide ; Humans ; Ketamine ; Nitrous Oxide ; Oxygen ; Oxytocin ; Phenylephrine ; Postpartum Period ; Pregnancy ; Vecuronium Bromide

OBJECTIVE: Endometriosis is a very common gynecological condition in which tissue similar to endometrium proliferates at sites outside the uterine cavity. Although it generally remain a benign condition, malignant transformation has been documented, and it is commonly found in association with endometrioid subtype ovarian carcinoma. In order to identify the genomic change in those areas possibly involved in the pathogenesis of endometriosis, we performed LOH analysis. METHODS: Twenty seven cases of endometriosis were analyzed for the detection of LOH using 5 microsatellite markers. LOH analysis was performed by PCR, capillary electrophoresis and gene scan analysis using DNA from sections of tumor and normal tissue pairs. RESULTS: Twenty two of 27 (81.5%) cases demonstrated LOH at one or more loci. The frequency of LOH was 37.0% (D18S69), 25.9% (D22S274), 14.8% (D22S283), 7.4% (D6S286), 7.4% (D13S160). CONCLUSION: The frequencies of LOH was increased in higher stage of endometriosis. Most notable findings were found at chromosome 18 and 22 loci (D18S69, D22S274). These region might involve the some candidate genes closely related with the pathogenesis of endometriosis.
Chromosomes, Human, Pair 18 ; DNA ; Electrophoresis, Capillary ; Endometriosis* ; Endometrium ; Female ; Loss of Heterozygosity* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Polymerase Chain Reaction