[Warning signs and symptoms on obstetric care. About their knowledge in women]. / Signos y síntomas de alarma obstétrica. Acerca del conocimiento que tienen las mujeres.

BACKGROUND: maternal mortality is caused by delays in recognizing complications at the medical facility. Maternal mortality increased during 2009 in Guanajuato, reflecting deficiencies in the care process. The objective was to determine the knowledge about signs and symptoms that pregnant and non-pregnant patients considered as obstetric emergency data during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. METHODS: a descriptive and comparative study in 150 pregnant and 150 non pregnant women aged 18 to 40 years was performed. A structured questionnaire was applied. The statistical analysis was performed in NCSS 2007 program. RESULTS: alarm sign and symptoms during pregnancy were identified by 72.2 % of the non-pregnant; at birth 54.4 % and 46.2 % in puerperium. The 92.9 % of pregnant women identified alarm sign and symptoms during pregnancy, during childbirth only 62.7 % and in postpartum 25 %. There was an association between previous pregnancy and knowing alarm signs and symptoms and the number of inquiries received. CONCLUSIONS: knowing the warning signs is related to previous obstetrical deliveries and by the educational work of the family physician during prenatal care.

Association between telomere length and CYP19 TTTA repetition polymorphism in healthy and breast cancer-diagnosed women.

INTRODUCTION: Several studies have reported an increase in breast cancer (BC) risk when patients are carriers of the CYP19 TTA polymorphism with ≥10 repeats; moreover, it has been reported that telomere length is associated with a higher susceptibility of developing cancer. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to understand the relationship between CYP19 TTTA repetition polymorphism and telomere length and its effects on serum estradiol, estrone and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 180 postmenopausal healthy and 70 BC-diagnosed women were included. Telomere length was determined through real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and aromatase polymorphism was analyzed through DNA; both samples were obtained from circulating leukocytes. Serum estrone, estradiol and FSH were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Patients with a BC diagnosis showed >10 repetitions more frequently, compared with that of healthy women (50% vs 23%, χ2 = 11.44, p = 0.0007). A significant difference in telomere length between healthy and BC women was observed (5,042.7 vs 2,256.7 pb, Z = 4.88, p < 0.001). CYP19 TTTA repeat polymorphism was associated with serum levels of estradiol and estrone in both groups, being higher in those with >10 repeats. Moreover, telomere length showed an inverse relationship with the number of repeats of the aromatase polymorphism in healthy women (R2 = 0.04, r = -0.24); in contrast, BC patients did not display this relationship. In addition, telomere length presented an inverse relationship with serum levels of estradiol and estrone in BC patients (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Telomere length is shorter in BC patients than in healthy patients. The CYP19 TTTA repeat polymorphism is associated with serum levels of estradiol and estrone in both healthy women and BC patients, being higher in those with polymorphism carriers >10 repeats. Telomere length has an inverse correlation with the number of repeats of the aromatase polymorphism in healthy women but not in BC women. Estradiol and estrone levels in BC women have an inverse relationship with telomere length.