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Biomedical subjects

P C Clarke

Publications and source records attributed to P C Clarke.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1979

Maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein levels as an index of fetal risk.

In a prospective study on an obstetric population (1,059 cases) an association was found between elevated levels of maternal serum AFP at weeks 16 to 22 and the occurrence of premature labor or the need for emergency cesarean section in the third trimester. There was no association with other late fetal complications including perinatal death, perinatal asphyxia, and intrauterine growth retardation. The sensitivity of the test in respect of premature labor was 14 per cent but the high incidence of false-positive results reduces the practical value of the test.

Cesarean Section↗
PubMed1978

The significance of raised maternal plasma alpha-fetoprotein in twin pregnancy.

A hundred twin pregnancies were examined before 27 weeks gestation. The level of maternal plasma alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) was correlated with outcome of the pregnancy. Forty per cent of all women had elevated plasma AFP levels. At birth the combined infant weights were greater in the women with elevated AFP; the gestational age at delivery was unrelated to the level of AFP in early pregnancy.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1977

alpha-Fetoprotein levels in pregnancies complicated by gastrointestinal abnormalities of the fetus.

alpha-Fetoprotein (AFP) levels have been measured in maternal serum and amniotic fluid in a variety of gastrointestinal abnormalities of the fetus. Maternal serum AFP levels were consistently elevated in abdominal wall defects of the fetus after 15 weeks gestation and the amniotic fluid levels were raised in 3 of the 4 patients measured. In atresia of the gastrointestinal tract and diaphragmatic hernia, serum AFP levels were usually normal unless there was an associated neural tube defect or multiple pregnancy, although the majority were not measured between 15 and 26 weeks gestation. If elevated amniotic fluid levels of AFP are used in the decision to terminate pregnancy on the assumption of a probable neural tube defect of the fetus, a proportion of terminations will be performed because of abdominal wall defects of the fetus.

Abdominal Muscles↗
PubMed1977

Screening for fetal neural tube defects by maternal plasma alpha-fetoprotein determination.

A total of 5539 consecutive pregnant patients at three maternity units in the City and Hackney District of London were screened for fetal neural tube defect by measurement of maternal plasma alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels. Only 25-7% of women booked at 16 to 22 weeks, the optimum time for this screening test; 54-1% booked before 16 weeks and 20-2% after 22 weeks. Of the women tested before 23 weeks, 300 had elevated levels of AFP in plasma and 14 of them had fetuses with abnormalities known to cause a rise in AFP levels (12 fetuses had a neural tube defect and 2 had alimentary tract abnormalities). Of women examined before 23 weeks, half of those with twin pregnancies had elevated levels of plasma AFP as did 16-7% of those who ultimately had a spontaneous abortion.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗