Phys.org: Phys.Org news tagged with: birth

Tourette syndrome misconceptions only one battle for patients

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 14:05:21 EST

The most disabling aspect of Tourette syndrome is that in 90% of cases, it exists in conjunction with another disorder. The most frequent co-occurring condition in people with Tourette is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), though the cause of this association is uncertain. Having one disorder can be disabling enough, but having two means coping with more than twice the disability.

Some radiation therapy treatments can decrease fertility

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:01:12 EST

In female cancer patients of reproductive age, radiation treatment directly to the ovaries should be avoided because there is a direct relationship between certain types of radiation therapy and fertility problems, according to a review in the April 1 issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, the official journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).

St. Louis hospital to study birth defect

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:16:13 EST

(AP) -- A top children's hospital wants to improve the survival rate of infants born with a birth defect that many families have never heard of until their child is diagnosed.

Time of conception linked to birth defects in United States

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 13:02:09 EST

A study published in the April 2009 issue of the medical journal Acta Pædiatrica is the first to report that birth defect rates in the United States were highest for women conceiving in the spring and summer. The researchers also found that this period of increase risk correlated with increased levels of pesticides in surface water across the United States.

Mothers of multiple births at increased odds of postpartum depression

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 07:17:16 EST

Mothers of multiples have 43 percent increased odds of having moderate to severe depressive symptoms nine months after giving birth compared to mothers of single-born children, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Researchers examined the relationship between multiple births and maternal depressive symptoms and found that multiple births increased the odds of maternal depression, and that few mothers with depressive symptoms, regardless of the multiple births status, reported talking to a mental health specialist or a general medical provider. The results are published in the April 1, 2009, issue of Pediatrics.

Pregnant women who smoke, urged to give up before 15-week 'deadline'

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 19:45:01 EST

Women who stop smoking before week 15 of pregnancy cut their risk of spontaneous premature birth and having small babies to the same as non-smokers, according to research published on bmj.com today.

Single embryo implants work better: study

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:54:28 EST

Implanting single embryos into the wombs of women seeking to boost fertility is more effective and less costly than placing two embryos at a time, a pair of studies released Wednesday found.

Researcher investigates link between folic acid and heart health, anemia

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 16:48:13 EST

(PhysOrg.com) -- A Georgia State University researcher and his colleague are investigating the effects of a decade-long requirement to fortify all cereals in the United States with folic acid, and its link with a chemical believed to play a role in cardiovascular disease.

Premature newborns lack 'death NET' to fight sepsis

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 10:15:17 EST

When locked in mortal combat with infection, some mature white blood cells have a formidable weapon: they literally cast a DNA net—called a neutrophil extracellular trap (NET)—that captures and kills bacteria that invade the human body. But the ability to form this "death" NET is missing in the white blood cells of newborn infants, born either at term or prematurely, and that, in part, may explain why millions of newborns worldwide are at higher risk for a potentially deadly blood infection, University of Utah medical researchers have discovered.

Baby boomlet: US births in 2007 break 1950s record

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:19:59 EST

(AP) -- More babies were born in the United States in 2007 than any year in the nation's history, topping the peak during the baby boom 50 years earlier, federal researchers reported Wednesday.

Preterm birth rate drops

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:57:02 EST

The nation's preterm birth rate declined slightly in 2007 - a finding that the March of Dimes hopes will prove to be the start of a new trend in improved maternal and infant health.

HPV vaccine may prevent preterm births

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 13:05:52 EST

Chronic human papilloma virus (HPV)-infections can lead to cellular changes in the cervix that can be a pre-stage to cervical cancer. Surgical treatment of these pre-stages gives an increased risk of preterm birth in subsequent pregnancies. As the HPV-vaccine can prevent pre-stages of cervical cancer, it may therefore reduce the number of preterm births. A new Norwegian study has calculated the benefits of HPV-vaccination.

Estrogen activates critical lung genes to improve lung function following preterm birth

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 07:11:28 EST

Estrogen may be a new postnatal therapy to improve lung function and other outcomes in preterm infants, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in an animal study.

Extremely premature children at high risk of learning difficulties by age 11

Wed, 11 Mar 2009 18:54:05 EST

Children born extremely prematurely are at high risk of developing learning difficulties by the time they reach the age of 11.

No 'Death NET'? That May Explain Why Millions of Infants are at Risk for Potentially Deadly Blood Infection

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 20:06:00 EST

(PhysOrg.com) -- When locked in mortal combat with infection, some mature white blood cells have a formidable weapon: they literally cast a DNA net-called a neutrophil extracellular trap (NET)-that captures and kills bacteria that invade the human body. But the ability to form this "death" NET is missing in the white blood cells of newborn infants, born either at term or prematurely, and that may explain why millions of newborns worldwide are at higher risk for a potentially deadly blood infection, University of Utah medical researchers have discovered.

Scatological clues lead to an intimate view

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 10:16:30 EST

The guys were all stressed out. There were new infants in the community, and the guys knew from experience that that's when invaders were likely to come and kill the babies, particularly the male infants. This annual threat was a defining moment in their lives -- it had more impact on everyone than the daily social struggle to be on top, or than any other community crisis, like defending the group against hostile neighbors. Nothing was more stress-inducing than having helpless infants around to protect from marauders.

UT Southwestern hospital halves its rate of premature births, researchers find

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 11:22:16 EST

UT Southwestern Medical Center's primary adult teaching hospital has cut its rate of preterm births by more than half in the past 15 years, even as national rates are rising, researchers have found.

Women with diabetes before or during pregnancy at higher risk of depression

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:59:03 EST

Low-income pregnant women and new mothers with diabetes have nearly twice the risk of experiencing depression during and after pregnancy than women without diabetes, according to a study in the February 25 issue of JAMA.

Anthropologist's studies of childbirth bring new focus on women in evolution

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:08:17 EST

Contrary to the TV sitcom where the wife experiencing strong labor pains screams at her husband to stay away from her, women rarely give birth alone. There are typically doctors, nurses and husbands in hospital delivery rooms, and sometimes even other relatives and friends. Midwives often are called on to help with births at home.

Early whales gave birth on land, fossil find reveals (Video)

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 06:42:16 EST

(PhysOrg.com) -- Two newly described fossil whales---a pregnant female and a male of the same species--reveal how primitive whales gave birth and provide new insights into how whales made the transition from land to sea.

Researchers investigate prenatal smoking link with antisocial behavior in children

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 17:29:30 EST

A Cardiff University research project has for the first time studied whether smoking during pregnancy can directly make children more likely to behave anti-socially.

Girl's birth defect exacts financial toll

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:37:41 EST

Since their Katelyn was born five years ago, Cheryl and Christopher Woodley have known the stress of rearing a child with special medical needs.

New research finds breastfeeding stops neglect

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 00:00:01 EST

(PhysOrg.com) -- When a mother breastfeeds she is essentially protecting her child from herself, according to UQ researcher and developmental paediatrician, Dr Lane Strathearn.

Preterm birth: Magnesium sulphate cuts cerebral palsy risk

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:19:29 EST

Magnesium sulphate protects very premature babies from cerebral palsy, a new study shows. The findings of this Cochrane Review could help reduce incidence of the disabling condition, which currently affects around one in every 500 newborn babies overall, but up to one-in-ten very premature babies (< 28 weeks of gestation).

Study examines live birth rates following in vitro fertilization

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 17:27:01 EST

Thirty years ago last summer, the world's first "test-tube" baby was born, and since then more than 1 million infants have been successfully conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF), the technique in which a woman's eggs and man's sperm are fertilized in a laboratory and then implanted in the mother's womb.

Scientists uncover evolutionary keys to common birth disorders

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 07:46:24 EST

The work of Forsyth scientist Peter Jezewski, DDS, Ph.D., has revealed that duplication and diversification of protein regions ('modules') within ancient master control genes is key to the understanding of certain birth disorders. Tracing the history of these changes within the proteins coded by the Msx gene family over the past 600 million years has also provided additional evidence for the ancient origin of the human mouth.

Preterm births rise 36 percent since early 1980s

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:07:36 EST

New government statistics confirm that the decades-long rise in the United States preterm birth rate continues, putting more infants than ever at increased risk of death and disability.

New study suggests winter babies face socioeconomic disadvantages

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 13:53:05 EST

Many of us may often feel that we've been born under an unlucky sign. Now, new research by a pair of University of Notre Dame economists suggests that some of us are, in fact, born in an unlucky season.

Fall babies: Born to wheeze?

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 06:59:22 EST

It is said that timing is everything, and that certainly appears to be true for autumn infants. Children who are born four months before the height of cold and flu season have a greater risk of developing childhood asthma than children born at any other time of year, according to new research.

Study finds association between male birth defect and certain genetic mutations

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:15:43 EST

A small percentage of males born with cryptorchidism (failure of one or both testicles to descend into the scrotum), the most frequent congenital birth defect in male children, are more likely to have genetic mutations, including for a syndrome that is a common genetic cause of infertility, according to a study in the November 19 issue of JAMA.