Conservative management of cervical pregnancy: a report of two cases.

BACKGROUND: Cervical ectopic pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy. Treatment of this clinical condition is controversial. Previously, hysterectomy was the mainstay of treatment, but in the recent past various conservative management approaches have been applied to preserve fertility. We report 2 such cases in which conservative approach was implemented. CASES: Case 1 was an early, nonviable cervical pregnancy in which systemic methotrexate was used with success. Case 2 was a viable, advanced cervical pregnancy (at 11 weeks) in which a combination of uterine artery embolization and systemic methotrexate was used. Ultimately this patient required hysterectomy due to sudden massive hemorrhage on day 22 of intervention. CONCLUSION: On reviewing our results and the literature, we conclude that uterine artery embolization with methotrexate is effective in reducing the ectopic cervical mass. However, there is always a risk of hemorrhage, which can be treated by either repeat uterine artery embolization alone or uterine artery embolization followed by curettage. Hysterectomy should be the last resort if all conservative methods fail.

Reliability of self-collected versus provider-collected vaginal swabs for the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis.

Women reluctant to undergo a per-speculum examination consider self-sampling more acceptable. The aim of this study was to compare self-collected vaginal swabs for detection of bacterial vaginosis (BV), candidiasis and trichomoniasis, with vaginal specimens obtained by the gynaecologist at per-speculum examination. Self-collected and provider-collected vaginal swabs were obtained from 50 women attending the gynaecological outpatients department. The Gram-stained smears and saline wet mounts prepared from the provider-collected vaginal swabs were examined by a microbiologist and a gynaecologist. We determined the validity and the inter-rater reliability of the overall BV score and the morphotype specific score using Kappa statistics. When compared with the provider-collected smear, the ability of the self-collected smear to diagnose BV had a sensitivity of 70% and a specificity of 97%. With specific instructions to help assure the depth of sampling, self-collected swabs can reasonably approximate specimens obtained by clinicians during speculum examination for the diagnosis of BV.

Improving quality of care during childbirth in primary health centres: a stepped-wedge cluster-randomised trial in India.

BACKGROUND: Low/middle-income countries need a large-scale improvement in the quality of care (QoC) around the time of childbirth in order to reduce high maternal, fetal and neonatal mortality. However, there is a paucity of scalable models. METHODS: We conducted a stepped-wedge cluster-randomised trial in 15 primary health centres (PHC) of the state of Haryana in India to test the effectiveness of a multipronged quality management strategy comprising capacity building of providers, periodic assessments of the PHCs to identify quality gaps and undertaking improvement activities for closure of the gaps. The 21-month duration of the study was divided into seven periods (steps) of 3 months each. Starting from the second period, a set of randomly selected three PHCs (cluster) crossed over to the intervention arm for rest of the period of the study. The primary outcomes included the number of women approaching the PHCs for childbirth and 12 directly observed essential practices related to the childbirth. Outcomes were adjusted with random effect for cluster (PHC) and fixed effect for 'months of intervention'. RESULTS: The intervention strategy led to increase in the number of women approaching PHCs for childbirth (26 vs 21 women per PHC-month, adjusted incidence rate ratio: 1.22; 95% CI 1.17 to 1.28). Of the 12 practices, 6 improved modestly, 2 remained near universal during both intervention and control periods, 3 did not change and 1 worsened. There was no evidence of change in mortality with a majority of deaths occurring either during referral transport or at the referral facilities. CONCLUSION: A multipronged quality management strategy enhanced utilisation of services and modestly improved key practices around the time of childbirth in PHCs in India. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CTRI/2016/05/006963.

Concomitant female genital tuberculosis and endometriosis.

AIMS: To demonstrate an association between female genital tuberculosis (FGTB) and endometriosis. METHODS: A total of 16 women who underwent laparoscopy (12 cases) or laparotomy (4 cases) and were found to have female genital tuberculosis and endometriosis were enrolled in this retrospective study. RESULTS: The mean age and parity were 28.2 years and 0.2, respectively. Past history of tuberculosis was present in 75% of the women (pulmonary in 50%). Menstrual dysfunction (especially oligomenorrhoea and dysmenorrhoea), constitutional symptoms, infertility, abdominal pain and lump were the main complaints. Diagnosis of FGTB was made by positive acid-fast bacilli (AFB) on microscopy, culture of endometrial aspirate, positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR), histopathological finding of epitheliod granuloma or findings of TB on laparoscopy or laparotomy. Diagnosis of endometriosis was made by laparoscopy or laparotomy. Pelvic adhesions were seen in all women, whereas frozen pelvis was seen in 7 (43.7%) women. Surgery was performed, which was laparoscopic adhesiolysis in 12 (75%), drainage of endometrioma in 12 (75%), cystectomy in 8 (50%), and total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy in 4 (25%) cases. With more then one type of (surgery in many cases). DISCUSSION: Female genital tuberculosis and endometriosis may have similar manifestations and can co-exist.

Human papillomavirus DNA in urine samples of women with or without cervical cancer and their male partners compared with simultaneously collected cervical/penile smear or biopsy specimens.

Infection of specific types of high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs) causes cervical cancer in women. Conventional test for genital HPV infection requires collection of scraped cervical cells or biopsy specimens, which involves invasive procedures. Utility of non-invasive urine sampling for detection of HPV in women and their male sexual partners is controversial. The validation of this urine-based HPV DNA test is of immense value not only in screening large population and children but also for HPV vaccine monitoring in adolescents. We examined the frequency of high risk HPV types 16 and 18 in simultaneously collected urine samples and cervical scrapes or biopsy specimens from women with cervical cancer and their single lifetime male sexual partners in order to validate the utility of urine sampling as a reliable non-invasive method for detection of genital HPV infection. Thirty women with invasive cervical cancer and their husbands along with 30 age-matched normal healthy women including their husbands were recruited for the study. Cervical biopsies/scrapes from women subjects and penile scrapes from their husbands and urine samples from all of them were collected before taking biopsy or scrapes. HPV-L1 consensus primer as well as high-risk HPV (HPV 16 and 18) type-specific oligo-primers were used for PCR detection of HPV DNA. The total frequency of HPV in women with cervical cancer was found to be 83% (25/30) while it was only 67% (20/30) in their male partners but there was virtually no difference in results between urine and scrape or tissue biopsy either in women or their male partners. Although healthy women and their husbands showed similar frequency of HPV infection both in urine and scrape samples, there was a significant difference (p=0.05) in the prevalence of high risk HPV type 16 in women with cervical cancer (70%) and their male partners (30%). Similar was the trend between control women and their male partners. The results also showed a very high prevalence of HPV type 16 among Indian women with cervical cancer while its frequency was significantly low in their single lifetime male partners. The case by case matching of HPV positivity and negativity between urine and cervical/penile scrapes or biopsies obtained from women and their male partners demonstrated that the non-invasive urine sampling can be reliably used for screening genital HPV infection in both men and women.

Prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) types 16 and 18 in healthy women with cytologically negative Pap smear.

OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) types 16 and 18 in healthy women with negative Pap smears in identifying women with underlying cervical squamous intra-epithelial (SIL) lesions. METHODS: A total of 3300 women who were attending the Gynecology OPD of Lok Nayak Hospital, one of the major government tertiary hospitals in New Delhi, were screened during a 1-year study period, and 2079 (63%) of them were found to have cytologically negative Pap smear with inflammation and the rest (37%) also had negative Pap report but without inflammation. Hundred and sixty of these sexually active women aged between 20 and 60 years were randomly selected, and were investigated by colposcopy and a guided biopsy was done wherever required. HPV types 16 and 18 DNA was detected in scraped cervical cells from all women using type-specific primers in polymerase chain reaction (PCR). RESULTS: The high-risk HPV (type 16 and 18) prevalence by PCR was found to be 10% (16/160). Histopathological findings were obtained in 123 women, out of which 15 had LSIL and four had HSIL. High-risk HPV types 16/18 could be detected in nine out of these 19 (47.3%) squamous intra-epithelial lesions (p < 0.00008) which includes two out of the four women (50%) having HSIL, while only seven out of 104 (6.7%) of the subjects with normal (negative) Pap reports (p = 0.03) had infection of high-risk HPV. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that about 10% of women who show a negative Pap smear, but have inflammation are positive for high-risk HPV types 16/18 and about 15% harbor squamous intra-epithelial lesions. It is suggested that high-risk HPV detection can be utilized as an adjunct to routine cytology screening programs to identify 'high risk' women who have concurrently negative Pap smears but may harbor oncogenic HPV infection and/or more likely to develop CIN lesions.

A prospective, partially randomized study of pregnancy outcomes and hematologic responses to oral and intramuscular iron treatment in moderately anemic pregnant women.

BACKGROUND: Daily oral iron supplementation during pregnancy fails to reduce the prevalence of anemia. However, 2 or 3 intramuscular doses of iron given at monthly intervals were recently found to be effective. OBJECTIVE: We compared the safety and efficacy in treating pregnancy anemia of 3 intramuscular doses of iron given at monthly intervals with those of daily oral iron supplementation. DESIGN: In a prospective, partially randomized study, 148 pregnant women received daily oral doses of 100 mg elemental Fe and 500 micro g folic acid, and 106 pregnant women received 3 intramuscular doses of 250 mg elemental Fe as iron dextran at 1-mo intervals and oral doses of 5 mg folic acid twice weekly. One hundred women in each group completed the study. Changes in hemoglobin, iron indicators, pregnancy outcomes, and birth weight were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: Hemoglobin and iron indicators improved significantly with both treatments. The increase in serum ferritin concentration after parenteral iron treatment was significantly higher than that after oral iron treatment. No significant differences between the 2 groups in pregnancy outcomes and birth weight were observed. Systemic side effects were more common in the parenteral iron group, whereas gastrointestinal side effects were more common in the oral iron group. CONCLUSIONS: The intramuscular administration of 3 doses of 250 mg Fe at monthly intervals appears to have good compliance and efficacy and may be used in women who cannot tolerate oral administration of iron. However, intramuscular administration of iron is appropriate only in hospital settings well equipped to treat anaphylactic crises.

Mini laparotomy versus conventional laparotomy for abdominal hysterectomy: a comparative study.

BACKGROUND: Less traumatizing measures for hysterectomies are searched for to improve the recovery from surgery. AIM: Comparison of minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy with conventional abdominal hysterectomy in respect to per-operative and post-operative outcome and complications. SETTING AND DESIGN: In a medical college hospital patients undergoing abdominal hysterectomy were enrolled. It was a concomitant comparative study. METHODS AND MATERIAL: We are presenting our comparative data of 100 cases of minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy (group I, incision =< 6 cm) performed over last 4 years from January 1998 to December 2002 and comparing the outcome with 99 cases of abdominal hysterectomy (group II, incision > 6 cm) done by traditional method over the same duration. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Chi-square and Fischer test with significance of p value being taken at 0.05 were used for categorical data, while student's t test was used for continuous data. RESULTS: Mean age and parity of patients were similar in the two groups. Incision was transverse in 100% cases in-group I and 22.2% cases in-group II. Estimated blood loss was significantly higher (354 ml) in group II in contrast to group I (240 ml). Blood transfusion was also required more commonly (22.2%) in-group II than in-group I (9%). Mean operative time was significantly more in-group II (90 minutes) than in group I (41 minutes). Mean hospital stay, day of mobility, starting oral diet and days of injectable analgesics required were higher in group II than in group I. Major complications were rare in both the groups, but minor complications were significantly higher in group II (40.4%) than in group I (26%). CONCLUSION: Minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy appears to be an attractive alternative to traditional abdominal hysterectomy with fewer complications.

Genital tuberculosis: an important cause of ectopic pregnancy in India.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the role of genital tuberculosis as an etiological factor for ectopic pregnancy. METHOD: A total of eighteen women of ectopic pregnancy with concomitant female genital tuberculosis and a total of one hundred thirty six patients of ectopic pregnancy over a period of three years were enrolled. RESULTS: Mean age of patients with ectopic pregnancy and concomitant female genital tuberculosis was twenty-six and mean parity was 0.7. Most of these patients were in poor socio-economic group. Diagnosis of female genital tuberculosis was made by presence of granuloma in histopathological examination of endometrial aspirate or tubal specimen, positive acid fast bacilli in microscopy or culture, positive polymerase chain reaction in endometrial tissue and positive findings of genital tuberculosis during laparoscopy or laparotomy. Genital tuberculosis was responsible for 13.2% of all cases of ectopic pregnancy in the present study. CONCLUSION: Genital tuberculosis appears to be an important cause of ectopic pregnancy in India.

An unusual case of synchronous carcinoid of ovary and gall bladder.

Multifocal carcinoid is a known phenomenon. We present a rare combination of an ovarian carcinoid synchronous with gallbladder carcinoid. This rare combination has not been reported so far. An asymptomatic 45-years-old perimenopausal lady was diagnosed to have a metastatic ovarian cancer, but on laparotomy she was found to have a primary synchronous metastatic gall bladder as well. On histopathological evaluation she was found to have two separate primary carcinoids. Subsequently the patient received chemotherapy and is completely asymptomatic on follow up. Further research needs to be undertaken and guidelines need to be formulated for management of these cases.

Prevalence and associated risk factors for postpartum depression in women attending a tertiary hospital, Delhi, India.

BACKGROUND: Maternal mental health is a largely ignored issue in the Indian population. Considering the high prevalence of postpartum depression, mental health assessment and screening of high-risk cases should be a part of routine antenatal care. AIM: To study the prevalence of women at risk for peripartum depression using Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) score in a tertiary teaching hospital in New Delhi, and to study the associated risk factors in the Indian population. METHOD: Five hundred and six (506) peripartum women were interviewed using a structured questionnaire, which included sociodemographic details like socioeconomic status, family structure, relationship with husband and mother-in-law, past obstetric history and gender of children, any history of previous psychiatric illness and outcome of current pregnancy in terms of mode of delivery, gender of newborn and neonatal complications. EPDS scoring was done using a Hindi translated version. Data were analysed using Epi Info version 3.32. RESULTS: Thirty one (6%) out of 506 women scored ≥ 10 on the EPDS. Birth of female child, nuclear family structure and poor marital relationship were found to have a statistically significant correlation with peripartum depression. CONCLUSION: The 6% prevalence of women at risk of peripartum depression in our study, which is similar to other such studies, is significant and hence maternal mental health assessment should be made a part of routine antenatal and postnatal care.

Wealth and happiness across the world: material prosperity predicts life evaluation, whereas psychosocial prosperity predicts positive feeling.

The Gallup World Poll, the first representative sample of planet Earth, was used to explore the reasons why happiness is associated with higher income, including the meeting of basic needs, fulfillment of psychological needs, increasing satisfaction with one's standard of living, and public goods. Across the globe, the association of log income with subjective well-being was linear but convex with raw income, indicating the declining marginal effects of income on subjective well-being. Income was a moderately strong predictor of life evaluation but a much weaker predictor of positive and negative feelings. Possessing luxury conveniences and satisfaction with standard of living were also strong predictors of life evaluation. Although the meeting of basic and psychological needs mediated the effects of income on life evaluation to some degree, the strongest mediation was provided by standard of living and ownership of conveniences. In contrast, feelings were most associated with the fulfillment of psychological needs: learning, autonomy, using one's skills, respect, and the ability to count on others in an emergency. Thus, two separate types of prosperity-economic and social psychological-best predict different types of well-being.

Life at the top: the benefits of height.

According to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index daily poll of the US population, taller people live better lives, at least on average. They evaluate their lives more favorably, and they are more likely to report a range of positive emotions such as enjoyment and happiness. They are also less likely to report a range of negative experiences, like sadness, and physical pain, though they are more likely to experience stress and anger, and if they are women, to worry. These findings cannot be attributed to different demographic or ethnic characteristics of taller people, but are almost entirely explained by the positive association between height and both income and education, both of which are positively linked to better lives.

Sertoli-Leydig cell tumor: a rare ovarian neoplasm. Case report and review of literature.

BACKGROUND: Sertoli-Leydig cell tumor is a gonadal tumor of the sex cord-stromal type. It is a rare tumor comprising 0.1 to 0.5% of all ovarian tumors. Management of these cases poses a difficult therapeutic challenge. CASE: A 13-year-old girl presented with acute urinary retention, excessive hair growth and deepening of the voice. A mass the size of a 28-week gravid uterus was arising from the pelvis. Serum testosterone level was raised to 145.2 ng/dl. Computed tomography revealed a heterogeneously hypoechoic, solid cystic mass arising from the left adnexa. Left salpingo-oophorectomy was done. A histopathological diagnosis of Sertoli-Leydig cell tumor (intermediate, Meyers type II) was given. CONCLUSION: Patients with Sertoli-Leydig cell tumors present with signs of defeminization followed by masculinization. Age of the patient, stage of the disease and degree of tumor differentiation based on morphology are the most important factors to consider in the management of the case.

Facial and body blood contamination in major gynecologic surgeries.

AIM: To determine the incidence of facial and body blood contamination in various major gynecologic surgeries. METHODS: A prospective study was conducted over a 6-month period on 122 major gynecologic surgeries (abdominal and vaginal) to determine the incidence of blood splashes on masks, goggles (or spectacles), body and feet of surgeons and assistants. RESULTS: The overall incidence of blood splashes was 49.18%, 59.5%, 28.68% and 22.95% on surgeons masks, goggles, body and feet, respectively. This incidence was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than for first assistants, who showed an incidence of blood splashes of 35.24% (mask), 38.13% (goggles), 20.49% (body) and 9.83% (feet). The lowest incidence of splashes was seen on second assistants, with 22.1% (mask), 24.73% (goggles), 10.52% (body) and 7.36% (feet). There was no significant difference in the facial splash rate between major abdominal and vaginal surgeries, but body and feet contamination was significantly higher in major vaginal surgeries (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: There is a very high risk of facial and body blood contamination in major gynecologic surgeries, putting the surgeon and assistants at risk of acquiring viral disease. Routine use of universal precautions in all gynecologic surgeries is strongly recommended.

Prospective study of glove perforation in obstetrical and gynecological operations: are we safe enough?

OBJECTIVES: To assess the glove perforation rate, efficacy of double gloving, effect of duration of surgery, expertise of surgeon and operative urgency on the glove perforation rate in obstetrical and gynecologic operations. METHODS: From February to September 2002, double glove protocol was made necessary for all major obstetrical and gynecologic procedures. The operating surgeon, first and second assistant were included in the study. Gloves damage was noted (overt by inspection, occult by hydroinsufflation technique). RESULTS: Of the 156 procedures included in study, 32 procedures were performed (all emergency operations) single-gloved because surgeons found double gloving clumsy (56%), made it difficult to tie knots due to lack of dexterity (24%), or were too tight (20%). One thousand one hundred and twenty single gloves were examined after each procedure by hydroinsufflation. The overall perforation rate was 13.6% (single versus double outer gloves, 13.8% versus l3.2%, P > 0.05). Matching perforations were found in six cases (4.6%). Thus, the protection offered by double gloves was 95.4% even if the outer gloves were perforated. Four inner gloves had preexisting perforations. Sixty unused gloves checked similarly revealed a perforation rate of 1.6%. Emergency cases had higher perforation rate compared to elective surgeries (16.6% versus 10.8%, P < 0.00 1). Surgeries lasting for more than 40 min had a higher perforation rate compared to those finished in less than or equal to 40 min (18.6% versus 7.6%, P < 0.001). The middle finger of the left hand was the most commonly involved. The surgeon, first assistant and second assistant were involved in 73.6, 23.3 and 3.2% cases, respectively. CONCLUSION: Double gloving offers considerable protection against exposure to contaminants in the blood and body fluids of the patient and should be made routine, especially in developing countries where HIV, hepatitis B and C are widely prevalent. Double gloving should be made mandatory in emergency procedures, which have a higher perforation rate due to operative urgency, and gloves should be changed in operations lasting for more than 40 min to ensure integrity of barrier.

Huge localized vaginal neurofibromatosis: an unusual cause of postmenopausal bleeding.

A 55-year-old lady, menopausal for 8 years, presented with vaginal swelling for the preceding 6 months and with post menopausal bleeding (two bouts). Examination revealed a vaginal mass of 7 x 5 cm which was ultrasonically diagnosed as vaginal fibroid. The vaginal mass was excised and confirmed to be a vaginal neurofibroma on histopathology.

Mini laparotomy versus conventional laparotomy for abdominal hysterectomy: a comparative study.

BACKGROUND: Less traumatizing measures for hysterectomies are searched for to improve the recovery from surgery. AIM: Comparison of minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy with conventional abdominal hysterectomy in respect to per-operative and post-operative outcome and complications. SETTING AND DESIGN: In a medical college hospital patients undergoing abdominal hysterectomy were enrolled. It was a concomitant comparative study. METHODS AND MATERIAL: We are presenting our comparative data of 100 cases of minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy (group I, incision =< 6 cm) performed over last 4 years from January 1998 to December 2002 and comparing the outcome with 99 cases of abdominal hysterectomy (group II, incision > 6 cm) done by traditional method over the same duration. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Chi-square and Fischer test with significance of p value being taken at 0.05 were used for categorical data, while student's t test was used for continuous data. RESULTS: Mean age and parity of patients were similar in the two groups. Incision was transverse in 100% cases in-group I and 22.2% cases in-group II. Estimated blood loss was significantly higher (354 ml) in group II in contrast to group I (240 ml). Blood transfusion was also required more commonly (22.2%) in-group II than in-group I (9%). Mean operative time was significantly more in-group II (90 minutes) than in group I (41 minutes). Mean hospital stay, day of mobility, starting oral diet and days of injectable analgesics required were higher in group II than in group I. Major complications were rare in both the groups, but minor complications were significantly higher in group II (40.4%) than in group I (26%). CONCLUSION: Minilaparotomy abdominal hysterectomy appears to be an attractive alternative to traditional abdominal hysterectomy with fewer complications.