The Impact of Symptoms of Depression and Walking on Gestational Age at Birth in African American Women

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of one abnormal fetus in a twin pregnancy, to compare impact of chorionicity and clinical outcome of intervention and expectant management. Thirty-seven dichorionic (DC) twins and 18 monochorionic (MC) twins complicated with one malformed fetus were evaluated for gestational age, birthweight and perinatal outcome. Six hundred and forty-two twin pregnancies were evaluated in the database. The control groups consisted of 429 DC and 86 MC twins without anomalous fetus. Mean birthweight and gestational age at birth for DC control group were (n= 429; 2137g and 34.71 weeks), DC study group,n= 37; 2117g (p= .338) and 33.97 weeks (p= .311), and DC study group with major malformations,n= 30; 2019g (p= .289) and 33.3 weeks (p= .01), and showed only significance for gestational age. There was no statistical significance between MC control group,n= 86; 2097g and 34.93 weeks, and MC study group,n= 18; 2237g (p= .338), and 34.42 weeks (p= .502). Because of limited data, the preliminary evaluation for expectant management and intervention, and survival of at least one normal fetus showed no impact. We conclude that, although, all DC twin pregnancies have a risk for preterm delivery, DC twins complicated with major malformation of one twin, have a lower mean gestational age at birth. Preliminary results for intervention does not improve fetal outcome for DC and MC twins and needs further evaluation with greater studies of impact or review.

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Birth-weight centiles and the risk of serious adverse neonatal outcomes at term

Journal of Perinatal Medicine ◽

10.1515/jpm-2017-0176 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 46 (9) ◽

pp. 1048-1056 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Joanna Yu ◽

Christopher Flatley ◽

Ristan M. Greer ◽

Sailesh Kumar

Keyword(s):

Birth Weight ◽

Gestational Age ◽

Neonatal Intensive Care ◽

Neonatal Outcomes ◽

Predicted Probability ◽

Exposure Variable ◽

Adverse Neonatal Outcomes ◽

Gestational Age At Birth ◽

The Impact ◽

Age At Birth

Abstract Background: Birth-weight is an important determinant of perinatal outcome with low birth-weight being a particular risk factor for adverse consequences. Aim: To investigate the impact of neonatal sex, mode of birth and gestational age at birth according to birth-weight centile on serious adverse neonatal outcomes in singleton term pregnancies. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of singleton term births at the Mater Mother’s Hospital, Brisbane, Australia. Serious adverse neonatal outcome was defined as a composite of severe acidosis at birth (pH ≤7.0 and/or lactate ≥6 mmol/L and/or base excess ≤−12 mmol/L), Apgar <3 at 5 min, neonatal intensive-care unit admission and antepartum or neonatal death. The main exposure variable was birth-weight centile. Results: Of the 69,210 babies in our study, the overall proportion of serious adverse neonatal outcomes was 9.1% (6327/69,210). Overall, neonates in the <3rd birth-weight centile category had the highest adjusted odds ratio (OR) for serious adverse neonatal outcomes [OR 3.53, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.06–4.07], whilst those in the ≥97th centile group also had elevated odds (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.30–1.75). Regardless of birth modality, smaller babies in the <3rd centile group had the highest adjusted OR and predicted probability for serious adverse neonatal outcomes. When stratified by sex, male babies consistently demonstrated a higher predicted probability of serious adverse neonatal outcomes across all birth-weight centiles. The adjusted odds, when stratified by gestational age at birth, were the highest from 37+0 to 38+6 weeks in the <3rd centile group (OR 5.97, 95% CI 4.60–7.75). Conclusions: Low and high birth-weights are risk factors for serious adverse neonatal outcomes. The adjusted OR appears to be greatest for babies in the <3rd birth-weight centile group, although an elevated risk was also found in babies within the ≥97th centile category.

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Effects of gestational age at birth on perinatal structural brain development in healthy term-born babies

10.1101/2021.05.02.442327 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Oliver Gale-Grant ◽

Sunniva Fenn-Moltu ◽

Lucas Franca ◽

Ralica Dimitrova ◽

Daan Christiaens ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Linear Regression ◽

Gestational Age ◽

Neurodevelopmental Outcome ◽

Magnetic Resonance Images ◽

Linear Regression Models ◽

Early Term ◽

Gestational Age At Birth ◽

The Impact ◽

Age At Birth ◽

Structural Brain

Multiple studies have demonstrated less favourable childhood outcomes in infants born in early term (37-38 weeks gestation) compared to those born at full term (40-41 weeks gestation). While this could be due to lower birthweight and greater perinatal morbidity, gestational age at birth may also have a direct effect on the brain and subsequent neurodevelopment in term-born babies. Here we characterise structural brain correlates of gestational age at birth in healthy term-born neonates and their relationship to later neurodevelopmental outcome. We used T2 and diffusion weighted Magnetic Resonance Images acquired in the neonatal period from a cohort (n=454) of healthy babies born at term age (>37 weeks gestation) and scanned between 1 and 41 days after birth. Images were analysed using tensor based morphometry (TBM) and tract based spatial statistics (TBSS). Neurodevelopment was subsequently assessed at age 18 months using the Bayley-III Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (n=281), and the effects of gestational age at birth and related neuroimaging findings on outcome were analysed with linear regression. Infants born earlier had areas of higher relative ventricular volume, and lower relative brain volume in the basal ganglia, cerebellum and brainstem. Earlier birth was also associated with lower fractional anisotropy, higher mean, axial and radial diffusivity in major white matter tracts. Gestational age at birth was positively associated with all Bayley-III subscales at age 18 months. Linear regression models predicting outcome from gestational age at birth were significantly improved by adding neuroimaging features associated with gestational age at birth. This work adds to the growing body of evidence of the impact of early term birth and highlights the importance of considering the effect of gestational age at birth in future neuroimaging studies including term-born babies.

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The Impact of Education on Help-Seeking Behaviors for Intimate Partner Violence Among African-American Women

10.29199/mwnp.101012 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 5-9

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

African American ◽

African American Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Help Seeking ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Help Seeking Behaviors ◽

American Women ◽

The Impact

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HIV Prevention Programming for Older African American Women: The Impact of a Faith-Based and Behavioral Science Partnership on Depressive Symptoms

Ethnicity & Disease ◽

10.18865/ed.30.2.287 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 287-294

Author(s):

Megan T. Ebor ◽

Aurora P. Jackson

Keyword(s):

African American ◽

Depressive Symptoms ◽

Hiv Prevention ◽

African American Women ◽

Psychological Wellbeing ◽

American Women ◽

Faith Based ◽

Older African American Women ◽

The One ◽

The Impact

Objective: The current study sought to test the effect of an HIV prevention intervention on depressive symptoms in a sample of older African American women.Design, Setting and Participants: A pretest-posttest randomized control group design was conducted in a mega-church in Los Angeles with a sample of 62 older African American women, aged ≥50 years, 29 of whom were randomly assigned to the experimental condition and 33 to the comparison/control condition.Measures: A measure of psychological wellbeing (CES-D) was utilized to test the effect of the four-session group intervention vs the one-session informational group intervention on change in depressive symptoms from pretest to posttest. Demographic characteristics included: measures of age in years; relationship and employment statuses (coded 1 for yes, 0 for no); and educational attainment.Results: Participation in the study was associated with a significant improvement in the women’s psychological wellbeing from baseline to time 2; ie, decreased depressive symptoms. This change was greater for women in the four-session experimental group than for those in the one-session comparison group, due in part to a marginally significant interaction between time and experimental conditions.Conclusions: This study demonstrates the utility of faith-based/behavioral-scientist partnerships in HIV programming. Findings contribute to the evidence on interventions that might reduce depressive symptoms and HIV risk among older African American women. Ethn Dis. 2020;30(2):287-294; doi:10.18865/ed.30.2.287

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