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Biomedical subjects

R J Seddon

Publications and source records attributed to R J Seddon.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1991

Lifestyle behaviours during pregnancy.

Lifestyle behaviours of 183 women before and during pregnancy were investigated by retrospective questionnaire in the first few days postpartum. The threshold of cigarette smoking for a reduction in birth weight was exceeded at full term by 17% of the women, but only 1% exceeded a similar threshold for alcohol consumption. Consumption below the recommended minimum level for one or more major food groups was reported by 35% of the women during pregnancy. Only 36% of the women were vigorously active before pregnancy, and only 13% remained so throughout pregnancy. Level of education was a significant predictor of healthy lifestyle behaviours. Concern for their baby's and their own health were the main reasons given for change in behaviour during pregnancy, while doctor's advice and antenatal classes were cited infrequently. A new approach to lifestyle enhancement by health professionals might promote desirable changes in relation to smoking and possibly also food consumption and physical activity.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Is outcome for low risk obstetric patients influenced by parity and intervention?

Maternal and perinatal morbidity were examined to assess the influence of parity and intervention procedures among 1032 women considered low risk at commencement of labour. A diagnosis of fetal distress, failure to progress during labour, maternal problems after delivery and consultation with or transfer of the neonate to a paediatrician occurred more frequently amongst nulliparous women (p less than 0.001). Failure to progress in labour was found to be influenced by parity (primigravida), maternal age (less than 20 years) and also by the use of epidural anaesthetic for pain relief (p less than 0.001). Prevalence of abnormal delivery was found to be influenced by parity (primigravida), failure to progress in labour and diagnosis of fetal distress. The use of epidural anaesthesia for pain relief was also found to increase the rate of abnormal delivery (p less than 0.001). Statistically significant differences occurred between the groups of patients, with patients of private specialists having the highest rates for induction (34%), use of epidural for pain relief (40%) and abnormal delivery (46%).

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Is outcome for general practitioner obstetricians influenced by workload and locality?

Maternal and perinatal morbidity and transfer patterns were examined to assess the influence of the number of deliveries performed by each general practitioner obstetrician and the distance from specialist care. There were statistically significant differences in transfer patterns between urban and rural practitioners and between those practitioners delivering fewer than twenty per year and those delivering twenty or more per year. Antenatally, rural practitioners transferred more of their patients to the base hospital and those practitioners delivering fewer than twenty per year had higher transfer rates than those delivering twenty or more per year. During labour the transfer rate was lowest for rural practitioners delivering more than 20 babies per year. Urban practitioners in comparison to rural practitioners delivered a significantly greater proportion of women who were considered to have a moderate or high obstetric risk. No association was found between the number of deliveries undertaken by general practitioners both urban and rural and maternal and neonatal morbidity. The proportion of women and neonates who had a score which indicated a less favourable outcome for maternal and neonatal morbidity, was higher for urban practitioners than for rural practitioners.

Delivery, Obstetric↗
PubMed1975

Fetal hypothyroidism complicating medical treatment of thyrotoxicosis in pregnancy.

Two women with thyrotoxicosis were treated with antithyroid drugs during pregnancy. One women had inadvertently received a therapeutic dose of radioiodine at 21 weeks gestation and the other suffered from severe thyrotoxicosis with a serum LATS level of 1850%. In both patients, the serum triiodothyronine was maintained above 500 ng/dl by the concurrent oral administration of this hormone. Despite this precaution, cord serum thyrotrophin levels were markedly elevated and both infants showed clinical signs of hypothyroidism at birth. This experience indicates that triiodothyronine does not prevent fetal hypothyroidism when given to the mother in pharmacological amounts.

Adult↗