Association of dietary calcium intake, total and ionized serum calcium levels with preeclampsia in Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Preeclampsia is a well-known cause of maternal mortality and morbidity in Ethiopia. The exact pathophysiology has not been fully understood. Calcium and magnesium deficiencies have been given emphasis to play roles in the pathophysiology. Although evidence is abundant, they are equivocal. The study aimed to see the association of dietary calcium intake, serum total calcium level and ionized calcium level with preeclampsia. It also evaluated the association between dietary calcium intake and serum calcium levels. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An unmatched case-control study was conducted in Gandhi Memorial, Tikur Anbessa, and Zewditu Memorial Hospitals, all in Addis Ababa, between October to December, 2019. Cases were 42 women with preeclampsia and controls were 42 normotensive women. The medical and obstetric history was gathered using a structured questionnaire and the dietary calcium intake information using a 24-h dietary recall. The serum levels of total serum calcium and ionized (free) calcium were measured using an inductively coupled mass spectrophotometer. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression and Pearson correlation test were utilized during data analysis. RESULTS: In comparison with controls, women with preeclampsia had lower mean (± 1SD) levels of ionized calcium level (1.1 mmol/l ± 0.11), total serum calcium level (1.99 mmol/l ± 0.35) and lower median (IQR) dietary calcium intake (704 mg/24 h,458-1183). The odds of having preeclampsia was almost eight times greater in those participants with low serum ionized calcium level (OR 7.5, 95% CI 2.388-23.608) and three times higher in those with low total serum calcium level (OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.024-9.370). Low dietary calcium intake also showed statistically significant association with preeclampsia (OR 3.4, 95% CI 1.092 -10.723). Serum ionized calcium level and total serum calcium level showed positive correlation of moderate strength (p = 0.004, r = 0.307), but no correlation was found between dietary calcium intake with both forms of serum calcium levels. CONCLUSION: This study showed significant association between low dietary calcium intake and low serum calcium levels with preeclampsia, hence this can be used as a supportive local evidence for the current context-specific recommendation of calcium supplementation in societies with low-dietary calcium consumption in an attempt to prevent preeclampsia, therefore implementation study should be considered in Ethiopia to look for the feasibility of routine supplementation.

Cervical stitch (cerclage) in combination with other treatments for preventing spontaneous preterm birth in singleton pregnancies.

BACKGROUND: Preterm birth (PTB) remains the foremost global cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Thus, the prevention of spontaneous PTB still remains of critical importance. In an attempt to prevent PTB in singleton pregnancies, cervical cerclage, in combination with other treatments, has been advocated. This is because, cervical cerclage is an intervention that is commonly recommended in women with a short cervix at high risk of preterm birth but, despite this, many women still deliver prematurely, as the biological mechanism is incompletely understood. Additionally, previous Cochrane Reviews have been published on the effectiveness of cervical cerclage in singleton and multiple pregnancies, however, none has evaluated the effectiveness of using cervical cerclage in combination with other treatments. OBJECTIVES: To assess whether antibiotics administration, vaginal pessary, reinforcing or second cerclage placement, tocolytic, progesterone, or other interventions at the time of cervical cerclage placement prolong singleton gestation in women at high risk of pregnancy loss based on prior history and/or ultrasound finding of 'short cervix' and/or physical examination. History-indicated cerclage is defined as a cerclage placed usually between 12 and 15 weeks gestation based solely on poor prior obstetrical history, e.g. multiple second trimester losses due to painless dilatation. Ultrasound-indicated cerclage is defined as a cerclage placed usually between 16 and 23 weeks gestation for transvaginal ultrasound cervical length < 20 mm in a woman without cervical dilatation. Physical exam-indicated cerclage is defined as a cerclage placed usually between 16 and 23 weeks gestation because of cervical dilatation of one or more centimetres detected on physical (manual) examination. SEARCH METHODS: We searched Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth's Trials Register, ClinicalTrials.gov and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (26 September 2019), and reference lists of retrieved studies. SELECTION CRITERIA: We included published, unpublished or ongoing randomised controlled trial (RCTs). Studies using a cluster-RCT design were also eligible for inclusion in this review but none were identified. We excluded quasi-RCTs (e.g. those randomised by date of birth or hospital number) and studies using a cross-over design. We also excluded studies that specified addition of the combination therapy after cervical cerclage because the woman subsequently became symptomatic. We included studies comparing cervical cerclage in combination with one, two or more interventions with cervical cerclage alone in singleton pregnancies. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently screened titles and abstracts of all retrieved articles, selected studies for inclusion, extracted data, assessed risk of bias, and evaluated the certainty of the evidence for this review's main outcomes. Data were checked for accuracy. Standard Cochrane review methods were used throughout. MAIN RESULTS: We identified two studies (involving a total of 73 women) comparing cervical cerclage alone to a different comparator. We also identified three ongoing studies (one investigating vaginal progesterone after cerclage, and two investigating cerclage plus pessary). One study (20 women), conducted in the UK, comparing cervical cerclage in combination with a tocolytic (salbutamol) with cervical cerclage alone in women with singleton pregnancy did not provide any useable data for this review. The other study (involving 53 women, with data from 50 women) took place in the USA and compared cervical cerclage in combination with a tocolytic (indomethacin) and antibiotics (cefazolin or clindamycin) versus cervical cerclage alone - this study did provide useable data for this review (and the study authors also provided additional data on request) but meta-analyses were not possible. This study was generally at a low risk of bias, apart from issues relating to blinding. We downgraded the certainty of evidence for serious risk of bias and imprecision (few participants, few events and wide 95% confidence intervals). Cervical cerclage in combination with an antibiotic and tocolytic versus cervical cerclage alone (one study, 50 women/babies) We are unclear about the effect of cervical cerclage in combination with antibiotics and a tocolytic compared with cervical cerclage alone on the risk of serious neonatal morbidity (RR 0.62, 95% CI 0.31 to 1.24; very low-certainty evidence); perinatal loss (data for miscarriage and stillbirth only - data not available for neonatal death) (RR 0.46, 95% CI 0.13 to 1.64; very low-certainty evidence) or preterm birth < 34 completed weeks of pregnancy (RR 0.78, 95% CI 0.44 to 1.40; very low-certainty evidence). There were no stillbirths (intrauterine death at 24 or more weeks). The trial authors did not report on the numbers of babies discharged home healthy (without obvious pathology) or on the risk of neonatal death. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Currently, there is insufficient evidence to evaluate the effect of combining a tocolytic (indomethacin) and antibiotics (cefazolin/clindamycin) with cervical cerclage compared with cervical cerclage alone for preventing spontaneous PTB in women with singleton pregnancies. Future studies should recruit sufficient numbers of women to provide meaningful results and should measure neonatal death and numbers of babies discharged home healthy, as well as other important outcomes listed in this review. We did not identify any studies looking at other treatments in combination with cervical cerclage. Future research needs to focus on the role of other interventions such as vaginal support pessary, reinforcing or second cervical cerclage placement, 17-alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate or dydrogesterone or vaginal micronised progesterone, omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation and bed rest.

Skilled Birth Attendance in Nigeria: A Function of Frequency and Content of Antenatal Care.

The utilization rate of maternal services remains low in sub-Saharan Africa and may be contributing to the region's high maternal mortality rate. This study examines the influence of antenatal care (ANC) on skilled birth attendance (SBA) in Nigeria. The data used were collected from a nationally representative sample of women (aged 15-49) in 2011. The sample is restricted to women who were within two years postpartum (weighted n = 9879). Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the association between ANC (number of visits attended and services received during last pregnancy) and SBA. Despite 70% of the women receiving any ANC, only 49% had SBA during their last childbirth. The number of ANC services received, rather than the number of ANC visits attended, was positively associated with having SBA during last childbirth after controlling for relevant covariates (p < 0.05). The focus, therefore, should be on increasing the number of services received during ANC.