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Objective:To evaluate the pregnancy outcomes of fetal tethered cord (TC) prenatally diagnosed by MRI.Methods:Clinical data of 38 fetuses diagnosed as having TC by MRI, including 36 singletons and two fetuses who were both one of dichorionic diamniotic twins, were retrospectively collected and analyzed in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University from January 2015 to August 2019. According to whether conus medullaris was located above the bladder or reached the lower edge of the bladder, all cases were divided into high or low groups. Pregnancy outcomes were compared between the two groups using Fisher's exact test and Student's t-test. Results:(1) The gestational age at MRI was (25.5±4.7) weeks. Among the 38 cases, 14 (36.8%) were isolated TC, 24 (63.2%) were complicated by other anomalies. The meningocele was responsible for the most (39.5%, n=15). The results of the ultrasound were consistent with those of MRI in 24 cases (63.2%). While in the other 14 cases (36.8%), the ultrasound only showed vertebral body's abnormal morphology, after which further MRI examination revealed a tethered cord. (2) Twenty-nine women (76.3%) chose to terminate the pregnancy. One patient (2.6%) underwent fetal reduction at 23 gestational weeks (one normal twin was delivered prematurely), and one (2.6%) was lost to follow-up. Seven (18.4%) cases continued the pregnancies to delivery. The postnatal follow-up period was 8.1 months (4.0 to 54.9 months). Two infants without comorbidities showed normal growth and development. Another three cases underwent surgeries after birth, and two cases died in the neonatal period. (3) The average width of the medullary cone was (2.5±0.8) cm. There was no significant difference in the spinal cord width between the high [(2.5±0.8) cm, n=34] and low group [(2.7±1.1) cm, n=4]. Six pregnancies (17.6%) in the high group was continued to delivery, and one of the neonates died of severe hydrocephalus. One patient in the low group (1/4) was delivered, while the baby died of neonatal asphyxia. Conclusions:Fetuses with isolated TC are prone to have a good prognosis. Further study should focus on the relation between the high or low position of the conus medullaris and pregnancy outcomes.
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Objective:To investigate the safety, efficacy and application indication of intra-operative cell salvage (IOCS) in cesarean section.Methods:A total of 1 265 pregnant women who received IOCS blood transfusion during cesarean section in 11 tertiary A hospitals from August 2016 to January 2019 were collected and divided into <1 500 ml group (796 cases) and ≥1 500 ml group (469 cases) according to the amount of blood loss during cesarean section. The general clinical data, ultrasonic imaging data, perinatal and puerperium indicators were analyzed retrospectively. The risk factors of intraoperative blood loss ≥1 500 mL using IOCS transfusion were analyzed by logistic multivariate regression.Results:(1) A total of 848 001 ml of blood was recovered and a total of 418 649 ml of blood was transfused in 1 265 pregnant women who received IOCS transfusions, which was equivalent to 23 258 U red blood cell suspension, greatly saving medical resources. The intraoperative blood loss in <1 500 ml group and ≥1 500 ml group was 800 ml (300-1 453 ml) and 2 335 ml (1 500-20 000 ml), respectively. No amniotic fluid embolism, severe adverse reactions, shock and death occurred in the two groups. (3) Multivariate regression analysis showed that age ≥35 years ( OR=1.5, 95% CI: 1.1-1.9), prenatal hemoglobin level <110 g/L ( OR=1.7, 95% CI: 1.3-2.2), history of uterine surgery ( OR=1.8, 95% CI: 1.3-2.6), placenta previa ( OR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.1-3.1), placenta accreta ( OR=2.6, 95% CI: 1.8-3.9), blood pool in the placenta ( OR=1.6, 95% CI: 1.1-2.3), abnormal posterior placenta muscle wall ( OR=1.8, 95% CI: 1.2-2.6), placenta projecting to the anterior uterine wall ( OR=3.0, 95% CI: 1.3-7.0) were risk factors for blood loss ≥1 500 ml in obstetric transfusion using IOCS technique, with statistical significance (all P<0.05). Conclusion:IOCS is safe and effective in cesarean section, which could save the medical resources and reduces medical expenses, however, it is necessary to strictly master the application indication.
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Objective:To investigate the prenatal MRI diagnosis of fetal intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) and the pregnancy outcomes.Methods:This retrospective study included 49 cases of fetal ICH diagnosed by MRI in Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University from July 2011 to November 2019. Two experts with more than five years of experience in obstetric radiology determined the location, number, area, stage and grade of the hemorrhage based on the MRI findings. Maternal age, gestational age at MRI, and the site, number, stage and grade of hemorrhage as well as other intracranial and extracranial abnormalities of the fetuses were compared between women with fetal germinal matrix-intraventricular hemorrhage (GM-IVH; GM-IVH group, n=39) and those without (non-GM-IVH group, n=10). MRI and ultrasound examination results of 37 cases who had MRI within three days after the ultrasound examination were compared. Postnatal and follow-up outcomes were summarized. Statistical analysis was performed using the independent sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test and Chi-square test. Results:There was no significant difference in the maternal age, gestational age at MRI, or the site, number or stage of hemorrhage between the GM-IVH group and non-GM-IVH group (all P>0.05). The incidence of ventriculomegaly was higher in the GM-IVH group than that in the non-GM-IVH group [87% (34/39) vs 0/10, t=24.522, P<0.001]. There were 51% (19/37) of the lesions that were missed by ultrasound found by MRI, including GM-IVH in 17 cases, right cerebellar hemisphere hemorrhage in one case and corpus callosum hemorrhage in one case. Among the 49 cases, seven were lost to follow-up, 29 terminated the pregnancy (six in non-GM-IVH group and 23 in GM-IVH group), two experienced intrauterine fetal death in late pregnancy and 11 gave live birth. Ten live births had GM-IVH, among them a relatively good prognosis was noted in fetuses with grade Ⅰ (two cases), grade Ⅱ (four cases), and grade Ⅲ (three cases) GM-IVH, while one case with grade Ⅳ GM-IVH had mental retardation at eight years old; one non-GM-IVH infant had hearing loss at birth and a cochlear was implanted with no other anomalies reported during a three-year follow-up. Conclusions:MRI can provide a more direct view of the location and grade of fetal ICH and is more accurate than prenatal ultrasound in diagnosing fetal ICH, which is a beneficial supplement to ultrasound. The prognosis of cases with grade Ⅳ GM-IVH is not good.
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Objective To study the changes in cesarean delivery rate (CSR) and indications against the background of two-child policy. Methods Maternal information and indications for cesarean delivery were retrospectively obtained from medical records of 62007 women who delivered at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University between January 2013 and December 2016. Indications for cesarean section were divided into 16 categories, such as maternal or fetal indication, repeat cesarean section, maternal request, labor arrest disorders, fetal distress, and so on. Changes in CSR and the proportion of cesarean delivery for each indication were evaluated. One-way analysis of variance, Chi-square or Fisher's exact test were used for statistical analysis. The average annual percent change (AAPC) in cesarean delivery rate was calculated by Joinpoint Analyses software. Relative contribution of each indication to the overall increase or decrease in CSR was analyzed using the data of the years of 2013 and 2016. Results The CSR dropped from 45.2％ (6683/14798) in 2013 to 38.3％ (6546/17104) in 2016. The rate of cesarean delivery due to maternal request and labor arrest disorders decreased significantly (χ2=49.402 and 14.617, both P<0.05) .The rate of cesarean delivery due to labor arrest disorders in all cases decreased sharply from 14.7‰ in 2013 to 0.9‰ in 2016 at an annual decrease of 48.0％ (95％CI: - 67.6％- - 21.5％). It was also worth noting that the rate of cesarean delivery on maternal request in all cases decreased from 119.3 ‰ in 2013 to 40.7 ‰ in 2016 at an average annual decrease of 30.1％ (95％CI: - 31.3％- - 28.9％). Despite of a limited number of cesarean delivery cases for uterine scar caused by leiomyoma resection, its rate increased from 1.4 per 1000 deliveries in 2013 to 2.9 per 1000 deliveries in 2016 with the highest average annual increase of 32.3％ (95％CI: 10.1％-60.9％), followed by the rate of cesarean delivery due to maternal pyrexia, increasing from 6.6 per 1000 deliveries in 2013 to 16.4 per 1000 deliveries in 2016 at an average annual increase of 27.4％ (95％CI: 11.0％-46.5％), and the rate of cesarean delivery due to repeat cesarean section, increasing from 67.6 per 1000 deliveries in 2013 to 113.9 per 1000 deliveries in 2016 at an average annual increase of 19.0％ (95％CI: 5.0％-34.6％). The first two positive contributors to the total decrease of CSR were maternal request and labor arrest disorders (144.2％ and 27.7％, respectively), while the first two negative contributors were repeat cesarean section and maternal pyrexia (-102.3％ and -18.9％, respectively). Conclusions The CSR is reduced after the implementation of two-child policy through active control on maternal request and application of new partogram.
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Objective To investigate the role of p38MAPK in the differentiation of murine osteoblasts, and to observe the expressions of receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG). Methods The calvarial osteoblasts of newborn BALB/c mice were cultured in MEM medium containing 10% NCS. Raloxifene (10~(-7) mol/L) and 17β-estradiol (10~(-8) mol/L) were added respectively when cells reached 70%-80% confluence combined with or without 5 μmol/L SB202190, an inhibitor of p38MAPK. The osteoblasts alkaline phosphatase activity assays were performed 72 hours later using PNPP method, and mRNA levels of alkaliphosphatase (ALP), OPG and RANKL were determined by RT-PCR. Results 17β-estradiol and raloxifene increased ALP activity and ALP mRNA level in osteoblasts in vitro which were blocked by p38MAPK inhibitor.The mRNA levels of RANKL and OPG were up-regulated by 17β-estradiol and raloxifene while the ratio of OPG/RANKL kept constant. SB202190 (5 μmol/L) inhibited the highly expressed RANKL and OPG in osteoblasts, and obviously decreased the ratio of OPG/RANKL. Conclusions p38MAPK inhibition blocked the differentiation of osteoblasts and decreased the up-regulated OPG and RANKL expressions in osteoblasts significantly (P<0.05).