Category Archives: Pregnancy
Vitamin D, Autism and Neonatal Jaundice?
A recent study indicates that a case of jaundice in full term newborns is an indicator of a higher possibility of psychological disorders such as autism. The study shows that babies born at term with jaundice were 56% more likely to be diagnosed with autism that those who did not experience jaundice. The following observations were noted in the course of the study. · Jaundice was found more often in boys, preterm infants, low birth weight babies and babies with congenital malformations. · Oddly babies born between October and March were 97% more likely to develop autism than babies born in the other months. · Mothers who had already had a child had a 129% more likely chance to have an autistic child. This has led the researchers to believe that the reason why babies born in the winter were more prone to jaundice was that they were exposed to…
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Posted in Pregnancy Tagged Autism, Neonatal Jaundice, Vitamin D Comments Off on Vitamin D, Autism and Neonatal Jaundice?
Immune System Genes can Affect Pregnancy Outcome
A new study has show that genetic factors can both increase susceptibility to and provide protection from common pregnancy issues such as miscarriage, preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction. Interactions between maternal cells and fetal cells are involved in different issues within pregnancy and birth. Maternal cells known as uterine NK cells and fetal trophoblasts are known in certain combinations to increase the risk of preeclampsia, recurrent miscarriage and fetal growth restriction. On the other hand in other combinations these cells interact to prevent these same conditions. The fetal trophoblasts seem to be key in the determination of problems that may occur in the pregnancy. Genetic factors have long been thought to have an effect on pregnancy outcomes including these 3 issues and even some birth defects and abnormalities in otherwise normal pregnancies and births. This could lead to more genetic testing at the beginning and throughout pregnancy. By monitoring the…
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Posted in Pregnancy Tagged Immune System Genes, Pregnancy Comments Off on Immune System Genes can Affect Pregnancy Outcome
German man wants to force Bayer to acknowledge defect with pregnancy drug
A German newspaper recently reported that letters written by scientists in the UK and Germany indicate that concern was being raised about the pregnancy test drug Duogynon in 1967 – yet it was still being prescribed until at least 1975. André Sommer from Pfronten, Bavaria, is suing Bayer for the defects he suffered after his mother took the drug while pregnant with him in 1975. He was born with severe problems with his bladder and sexual organs. His case will be heard soon by the Berlin District Court, and will include the documents which have recently come to light in which doctors wrote to each other about problems they had observed. “The seeming relation between the increase in birth defects and the sale of the pregnancy test is pretty alarming,” one scientist wrote on November 1967. “We have to be extremely careful,” when using the drug with pregnant women, another…
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Posted in Birth Defects, Dangerous Drugs, Pregnancy Tagged Bayer, defect, pregnancy drug Comments Off on German man wants to force Bayer to acknowledge defect with pregnancy drug
