BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology
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Multicenter Study
A longitudinal study of women's memory of labour pain--from 2 months to 5 years after the birth.
To investigate the memory of labour pain at 2 months, 1 year and 5 years after childbirth and its association with the use of epidural analgesia and overall evaluation of childbirth. ⋯ There was significant individual variation in recollection of labour pain. In the small group of women who are dissatisfied with childbirth overall, memory of pain seems to play an important role many years after the event. These findings challenge the view that labour pain has little influence on subsequent satisfaction with childbirth. In-labour pain and long-term memory of pain are discussed as two separate outcomes involving different memory systems.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Ear acupuncture or local anaesthetics as pain relief during postpartum surgical repair: a randomised controlled trial.
To evaluate two methods of pain relief during postpartum surgical repair in regard to effectiveness, wound healing and patient evaluation. ⋯ Ear acupuncture as used in this trial was less effective for pain relief compared with a local anaesthetic. No difference was observed in wound healing, need for revision of wound or dyspareunia. Patient satisfaction with allocated pain-relief method was lower in the ear acupuncture group.
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Tuberculosis (TB) is a globally important cause of morbidity and mortality with an increasing incidence in women of reproductive ages. This descriptive study using the UK Obstetric Surveillance System demonstrates key differences in the presentation of TB during pregnancy compared with the nonpregnant population. ⋯ Presentation may be atypical, with extrapulmonary disease as common as pulmonary. Clinicians should be aware of the potential for nonspecific presentation of the disease in pregnancy and consider the diagnosis in women, especially recently arrived immigrants, presenting with nonspecific symptoms.
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Little published evidence supports the widely held contention that research in pregnancy is underfunded compared with other disease areas. ⋯ This systematic review of research expenditure and priorities from national and international funding bodies suggests relative underinvestment in maternal/perinatal health. Contributing factors include the low political priority given to women's health, the challenging nature of clinical research in pregnancy, and research capacity dearth as a consequence of chronic underinvestment.
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To investigate the relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure and fetal growth and preterm birth and to estimate the effect of dose and timing of alcohol exposure in pregnancy. ⋯ Alcohol intake at higher levels, particularly heavy and binge drinking patterns, is associated with increased risk of preterm birth even when drinking is ceased before the second trimester. This finding, however, is based on small numbers and needs further investigation. Dose and timing of prenatal alcohol exposure appears to affect preterm delivery and should be considered in future research and health education.