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Biomedical subjects

J M Stronge

Publications and source records attributed to J M Stronge.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

The timing of delivery in diabetic pregnancy: a 10-year review.

The approach of term in the pregnancy of a diabetic woman is a time of anxiety for patient and physician alike. The impact of a conservative approach to the timing of delivery is outlined in this review of the clinical course and outcome of 276 pregnancies of diabetic women, delivered at the National Maternity Hospital, Dublin between 1981 and 1990. The mean gestation at delivery was 39 weeks, 229 patients (83%) delivered at or beyond 38 weeks and 112 patients (41%) delivered at or beyond 40 weeks. The overall induction of labour rate was 27% and the elective Caesarean section rate was 19%. Sixty seven percent of patients achieved a normal delivery, the forceps rate was 5%, and 28% of patients were delivered by Caesarean section. There were 16 perinatal deaths in the series, with 7 due to lethal malformations. There were 5 deaths of normally formed infants occurring at or beyond 38 weeks' gestation. All of these 5 deaths had been preceded by clinically apparent polyhydramnios or macrosomia and recognized poor control. This study stresses the value of strict diabetic control in the management of diabetic pregnancy and highlights the significance of polyhydramnios and macrosomia as indicators of risk approaching term in diabetic pregnancy.

Adolescent

DES clinic--the first six months.

In October 1990 a DES (Diethylstilbestrol) clinic was established at the National Maternity Hospital, Dublin. We describe the results of the first six months of the clinic. During this time, 172 inquiries were received; 95 women were seen at the clinic, 16 were deemed to be DES--exposed and eight were classified as possibly DES exposed. Classical cervicovaginal signs of DES exposure were noted in 15 women, a further eight women showed cervical epithelial abnormalities at colposcopy, the history of in utero DES exposure was confirmed in eight cases. No cases of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or vaginal clear-cell adenocarcinoma were detected. Pregnancy related problems possibly attributable to DES exposure were documented in six women.

Adenocarcinoma

Outcome of the second labour in patients whose first labour was prolonged: the Dublin experience.

This observational study examined the outcome of the second delivery in patients whose first labour was prolonged. The onset of labour was defined as that time when the diagnosis of labour was made on admission to the delivery unit. The first labour was defined as prolonged when delivery occurred more than 12 h later. The study was confined to those patients (n = 66) who had a prolonged first labour with a single, live fetus and cephalic presentation during 1984-1987 and who had a subsequent labour. Sixty-one of the 66 patients (92%) delivered vaginally, and 5 were delivered by emergency caesarean section. Forty-six (70%) delivered within 6 h of admission. Although all 66 had received oxytocin in their first labour, only 8 (12%) required oxytocin in their second labour. Fourteen (82.4%) of the 17 patients with a previous caesarean section had a vaginal delivery. These results indicate that compared to the first labour the duration of the second labour and the oxytocin requirements in the second labour were significantly reduced. These findings are reassuring for patients who have had a long difficult first labour.

Delivery, Obstetric

Fetal acidosis in labour: a prospective study on the effect of parity.

The effect of parity on intrapartum fetal scalp pH was investigated in 6466 patients in labour with a live fetus who were delivered in 1987. 350 (5.4%) required fetal scalp blood sampling for pH (FBS), 236 primigravidae (10.4%) and 114 multigravidae (2.7%) (P less than 0.001). Fetal acidosis (pH less than 7.20) was detected in 35 patients, 27 primigravidae (11.4%) and 8 multigravidae (7.0%) (P less than 0.001). The incidence of intrapartum acidosis in the 2275 primigravidae and the 4191 multigravidae was 1.2 and 0.2% respectively (P less than 0.001). The two deaths from birth asphyxia and three cases of neonatal seizures occurred in primigravidae. In primigravidae requiring FBS, fetal acidosis was not associated with the use of oxytocin or with increased duration of labour. Neonatal seizures were more common overall in primigravidae than in multigravidae and more common in patients requiring FBS than in those not requiring FBS (P less than 0.05). The higher incidence of FBS, fetal scalp acidosis and neonatal seizures in primigravidae has important implications for intrapartum fetal monitoring.

Acidosis

The miscarriage clinic: an audit of the first year.

We preview the results of the first year in a Miscarriage Clinic set up in 1989 in an effort to improve the support and counselling of women who have a miscarriage. Of 381 patients referred, 79% attended. The only statistically significant difference between the women who attended and those who did not attend was in the proportion of women who had planned their pregnancies (65% versus 33%, P less than 0.01). Of the 300 patients who attended, 4% reported no grief reaction; 75% experienced a reaction which had resolved within one month and 21% experienced a reaction which had not resolved. No factor was identified which could predict the duration of the grief reaction. This audit demonstrates that there is a strong demand and need for this service for couples who experience a miscarriage.

Abortion, Spontaneous

Is amniotic fluid quantitation of value in the diagnosis and conservative management of prelabour membrane rupture at term?

This study examined the hypothesis that ultrasound quantitation of amniotic fluid depth is of value in the diagnosis and management of prelabour rupture of the membranes (PROM) at term. The deepest vertical pool was measured in 151 consecutive patients with a history of suspected PROM for at least 10 h before labour. In 100 patients the diagnosis of PROM was confirmed by the collection of amniotic fluid at the vulva. There was no difference in mean depth of amniotic fluid in 100 patients with confirmed PROM, compared with 51 in whom PROM was not confirmed (48.5 mm SD 16.4 vs. 60.1 mm SD 16.5); the frequency of oligohydramnios (fluid depth less than 30 mm) was 5% and 5.8% respectively. There was no relation between ultrasound amniotic fluid quantitation and the onset of labour, the duration of labour nor the frequency of oxytocin augmentation in labour. The results show that ultrasound quantitation of amniotic fluid is of no value in the diagnosis and conservative management of PROM at term.

Amniotic Fluid

The influence of birth weight on labor in nulliparas.

The purpose of this study was to examine the hypothesis that dystocia in nulliparas is directly related to birth weight. The study was confined to the first 1000 nulliparas delivered in 1988 who went into labor after 37 weeks' gestation with a single live fetus and cephalic presentation. The management of labor was standardized. As birth weight increased, there was an increase in the mean duration of labor and of the second stage of labor, in the incidence of oxytocin augmentation, and in the incidence of both cesarean and forceps delivery for dystocia. The direct relationship between birth weight and the mean duration of labor was independent of gestation and oxytocin augmentation. These findings suggest that birth weight is an important factor in the development of dystocia in nulliparas.

Birth Weight

Successful outcome after antepartum expulsion of placenta and fetus into the abdominal cavity; a case report.

Spontaneous rupture of the uterus before labour is a rare event associated with a high incidence of maternal and fetal death. We report a case of spontaneous uterine rupture at 34 weeks' gestation in a patient's second pregnancy. The case is unusual because both the mother and baby survived despite the expulsion of the placenta with the fetus into the abdominal cavity prior to laparotomy.

Abdomen

Fetal survival following coagulopathy at 17 weeks' gestation.

Placental separation in the third trimester of pregnancy may be associated with coagulopathy, fetal distress, or intrauterine death. We report a case of vaginal bleeding due to placental separation at 17 weeks' gestation associated with disseminated intravascular coagulation. After treatment with blood, fresh frozen plasma, and fibrinogen, the pregnancy progressed uneventfully for another 12 weeks, when delivery by emergency cesarean section was performed.

Abruptio Placentae

Contribution of prematurity and low birth-weight to neonatal death in Chinese and Western populations.

This paper analyses the contribution of low birth-weight (birth-weight between 500 and 2,500 g) and prematurity (gestation less than 37 weeks) to neonatal death in Chinese and Western populations. The incidences of low birth-weight in the Tsan Yuk Hospital, Hong Kong, the State of Victoria, and the Mercy Maternity Hospital, Melbourne, were 4.63%, 4.29% and 5.66% respectively and the incidences of prematurity were 2.08%, 4.89% and 7.42% respectively. The neonatal mortality rate (per 1,000 livebirths) for premature infants born in Victoria was 64, 89 for those born at the Mercy Maternity Hospital and 119 for the Tsan Yuk Hospital. This paper has demonstrated that a striking differences exists in prematurity rates between Chinese and Western populations, and also that the mortality rate of premature infants is lower in Western populations. If the reason for the lower incidence of prematurity in the Chinese population could be determined and the mortality of premature infants maintained in the Western population, a significant lowering of perinatal mortality would result. Studies to determine causes for premature births in Chinese and Western populations should therefore be undertaken.

China