Indications for increase in caesarean delivery.

BACKGROUND: The increasing caesarean delivery rate worldwide is followed by increased maternal morbidity due to pathological placentation, peripartum hysterectomy and obstetric bleeding. The aim of this study was to investigate the indications for caesarean delivery. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective observational study. Data were retrieved from the Swedish Pregnancy Register and obstetric records at a tertiary hospital in Sweden between the early 1990s and 2015. RESULTS: Caesarean delivery in Sweden increased from 10% in the early 1990s to 17% in 2015 concomitantly with decreased instrumental delivery and increased labour induction. Most planned caesareans at the tertiary hospital were performed on maternal request with a rate increasing from 0.6 to 4.6% of all deliveries (p < 0.001), and 60% of these women reported secondary fear of vaginal delivery. The second most common indication previous uterine scar increased from 1.2 to 2.3% (p < 0.001). Most urgent caesareans in 2015 were carried out because of prolonged labour with the rate increasing from 2.1% to 5.4% of all deliveries (p < 0.001). The second most common indication was imminent fetal asphyxia which increased from 2.4 to 2.6% (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The Swedish caesarean delivery rate increased concomitantly with a decrease in instrumental delivery and an increase in labour induction. Most of the planned caesareans were performed on maternal request and most of the urgent caesareans were carried out because of prolonged labour. These findings emphasise the importance of standardised definitions of maternal request and follow-up after a negative birth experience, as well as adequate definitions of prolonged labour and foetal asphyxia to decrease unnecessary caesareans.

The expression of prostaglandin receptors EP3 and EP4 in human cervix in post-term pregnancy differs between failed and successful labor induction.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate expression and localization of prostaglandin receptors EP1-4 and FP and localization of stromal factors CTGF (connective tissue growth factor), furin, calgranulin B and ALOX15 (arachidonate 15-lipooxygenase) in human cervical tissue from post-term women with failed or successful labor induction after prostaglandin priming. DESIGN: Experimental prospective clinical study. SETTING: Tertiary obstetric care center. POPULATION: Twenty-six women giving birth post-term, with failed or successful labor induction, and a control group consisting of 19 women with spontaneous onset of labor and delivery at term. METHODS: Biopsies were obtained from post-term women with successful (responders; R) and failed (non-responders; NR) labor induction. Women with spontaneous delivery at term were included as controls (C). mRNA expression was determined with real time PCR, protein expression and localization with immunohistochemistry. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Comparisons of mRNA and protein expressions between post-term pregnancies with failed and successful labor induction as well as term controls. RESULTS: EP4 mRNA expression was down-regulated concomitant with an up-regulation of EP3 mRNA expression in cervix from the NR group as compared with the R group. In stroma, immunoreactivity of the EP4 protein was increased in the NR group as compared with R and C groups. CONCLUSIONS: Failure of cervical ripening, after local application of prostaglandins for labor induction, may be caused by the increased expression of EP3 and concomitant decrease in EP4 expression.

[Risk factors among children born at the limit of viability 22+0 - 23+6 weeks]. / Etiskt dilemma kring barn födda före 24 graviditetsveckor.

Despite improved survival of extremely preterm infants born at <28 weeks gestational age (GA) since the 1990s, only few reports on long-term outcomes have been published. The aim of our study was to determine risk factors among mothers and outcomes for their children born at the limit of viability (GA 22 + 0 - 23 + 6 weeks) at the Karolinska university hospital in 2009-19, before and after the introduction of new national interventionist guidelines in 2016. We hypothesized that infant survival, morbidity and cognitive functions at 2 years' corrected age had improved after the new clinical practice. Maternal risk factors were identified, which emphasize the need of standardized follow-up and counseling for women at increased risk of extreme preterm birth. The intrauterine fetal death rates were unchanged. Among births at 22 weeks, the neonatal mortality tended to decrease 96 vs. 76 percent of live births (p = 0,05), and the 2-year survival tended to increase 4 vs 24 percent (p = 0,05). At 23 weeks, the neonatal mortality decreased 56 vs 27 percent of live births (p = 0,01), and the 2-year survival increased 42 vs 64 percent (p = 0,03). In contrast, the morbidity and cognitive disability at 2 years' corrected age were unchanged. Our results were in accordance with previous reports where no substantial improvement in cognitive functions are reported among infants born at GA <24 weeks since the 1990s. They highlight the importance of comprehensive ethical considerations before active interventions at threatening preterm birth < 24 weeks.

Progesterone Gel and Placebo Prolonged Pregnancy More Effectively Than Intravenous Tocolysis Alone in Women with Preterm Labor.

The aim of this trial was to evaluate the effect of progesterone gel compared to placebo in prolonging pregnancy among women with preterm labor. Methods: A randomized controlled trial in Sweden in 2009−18. Women with early preterm labor were randomized to daily doses of progesterone gel 90 mg (n = 28) or placebo (n = 30) after standard intravenous tocolytics. Women with intravenous tocolytics alone (n = 29) served as controls. Results: The median latency to delivery was 68 (range 28−88) days with progesterone and 72 (range 9−90) days with placebo (p = 0.84), compared to 1 (range 1−2) day in the control group (progesterone and placebo vs. control p < 0.001). The rate of preterm birth before 34 weeks was 32% after progesterone and 37 % after placebo (p = 0.32) compared to 100 % in the control group (p < 0.001, respectively). The composite neonatal morbidity (p = 0.65) and neonatal intensive care unit admission (p = 0.12) were comparable between the progesterone and placebo groups and lower in these groups compared with neonates in the control group (p < 0.001, respectively). Conclusions: Progesterone gel and placebo were equally effective in prolonging pregnancy among women with early preterm labor, and both treatments were more effective than standard intravenous tocolysis alone. We hypothesize that the acidic placebo gel reinforced the biochemical barrier at the uterine cervix, which counteracts ascending pathogen invasion and subsequent inflammation, and thereby prevented preterm labor.

Blue Rubber Bleb Nevus Syndrome in the Obstetric Patient: A Case Report of Anesthetic Implications and Management.

Blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome (BRBNS) is a rare systemic syndrome characterized by venous malformations usually found in the skin and visceral organs. To date, 11 case reports describing BRBNS during pregnancy have been published. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing intracranial, airway, epidural, and birth canal involvement of venous malformations in the same parturient. Key lessons learned include clinical presentation, workup, team management, and care of obstetric patients with this disorder.

A parietal bone fracture with subgaleal and subdural hemorrhage in association with vacuum extraction delivery.

A neonatal parietal bone fracture was complicated by subgaleal and subdural hematomas after a vacuum extraction delivery. Low-dose computer tomography visualized a comminuted skull fracture. Close observation of infants delivered by vacuum extraction, conservative management after a skull fracture, and further studies on vacuum traction monitoring are warranted.

Prostaglandin treatment is associated with a withdrawal of progesterone and androgen at the receptor level in the uterine cervix.

Treatment with prostaglandin(PG)-E2 is clinically efficient for cervical priming. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of PG-E2 on the expression of the progesterone (PR), androgen (AR) and glucocorticoid (GR) receptors in human uterine cervix in prolonged pregnancy. The study groups were postterm nulliparous women with unripe cervices undergoing cervical priming with PG-E2 before labor induction. Responders (n = 12) who delivered vaginally were compared with non-responders (n = 10), who underwent cesarean section due to failure to progress to the active phase of labor. Controls (n = 18) with vaginal partus at a normal gestational age served as a reference group. Cervical levels of PR-A and PR- B isoforms, AR and GR, serum levels of their ligands and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) were quantified. The responder group displayed lower total PR-AB and AR protein levels as compared to non-responders, and lower PR-B and AR protein levels as compared to controls. In addition, the PR mRNA level was lower in responders as compared to non-responders. The GR protein level did not differ between the groups. We conclude that successful PG-E2 priming was followed by a progesterone and androgen withdrawal at the receptor level in the uterine cervix.

[Rheumatic heart disease behind life-threatening heart failure in pregnancy]. / Reumatisk hjärtsjukdom bakom livshotande hjärtsvikt hos gravid.

Valvular heart disease constitutes the majority of all causes of heart disease in pregnancy. In the presence of valvular heart disease, the necessary haemodynamic changes of pregnancy might cause heart failure, leading to severe maternal and fetal morbidity and even mortality. In lower-income countries, rheumatic heart disease remains one of the major causes of death related to pregnancy [6]. In low-income countries, rheumatic heart disease is found in 60% to 80% of the pregnant women with heart disease, and 10% to 30% have a congenital disorder including congenital valve disorders [4]. The most common valvular lesion of rheumatic heart disease is mitral stenosis. This valvular lesion can be the cause of extreme disability and even mortality during pregnancy due to an increase in the transvalvular gradient and a rise in left atrial pressure. The maternal mortality associated with mitral stenosis is stratified by New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification: class I, 0.1%; class II, 0.3%; class III, 5.5%; and class IV, 6.0%. Most patients are in class I or II at presentation, but 12% to 25% of patients are in class III or IV [14].