BACKGROUND Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is the leading cause of genital ulcer disease worldwide. The virus can be transmitted to neonates and there are scarce data regarding incidence of HSV-2 among women in pregnancy and after childbirth. The aim of this study is to measure the incidence and risk factors for HSV-2 infection in women followed for 9 months after childbirth. METHODS Preg...

BACKGROUND Most maternal deaths, intrapartum-related stillbirths, and newborn deaths in low income countries are preventable but simple, effective methods for improving safety in institutional births have not been devised. Checklist-based interventions aid management of complex or neglected tasks and have been shown to reduce harm in healthcare. We hypothesized that implementation of the WHO Sa...

The purpose of this literature review was to identify and describe recent empirical studies of childbirth education outcomes and to identify areas for further study. The search produced 63 studies; only 12 met the inclusion criteria. The literature demonstrated inconclusive evidence regarding the effectiveness of childbirth education. None of the studies used a theoretical framework that propos...

OBJECTIVES To examine the effectiveness of a birth ball exercise programme during childbirth by measuring childbirth self-efficacy and childbirth pain. In addition, it tested the mediating effects of childbirth self-efficacy on the relationship between the birth ball exercise programme and childbirth pain. DESIGN Randomised controlled trial. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING The study was conducted ...

BACKGROUND Development of appropriate interventions to increase male involvement in pregnancy and childbirth is vital to strategies for improving health outcomes of women with obstetric complications. The objective was to gain a deeper understanding of their experiences of male involvement in their partners' healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth. The findings might inform interventions for...

Introduction The following history represents a selection of articles taken from the Internet and other sources. These are referenced at the end. They give a reasonably accurate and concise history of childbirth and should provide any prospective mother of the 21st century with a realistic perspective of the safety of childbirth. Thus, when she embarks upon her pregnancy, knowledge of the past ...

Objective. Development of an effective method for preparing the cervix in pregnant women with a tendency to overmaturity against background lack biological readiness childbirth, as well reducing time soft birth canal childbirth order conduct subsequent labor excitation.
 Material and methods. The patients were divided into 3 groups depending on childbirth: 1st group (n = 50) only laminaria...

Treatment and outcome of childbirth depend on the acidobasic balance of the fetal blood related to the oxygen and carbon dioxide level. Hypoxemia could lead to asphyxia that is why fetal monitoring and biochemical parameters assessment are mandatory. Although there are compensatory mechanisms that temporarily protect the fetus, there are also other factors that interfere with the oxygenation of...

Methods.Medline, Embase, Pubmed, and the Cochrane library 2004.1 were searched for clinical trials where hypnosis during pregnancy and childbirth was compared with a non-hypnosis intervention, no treatment or placebo. Reference lists from retrieved papers and hypnotherapy texts were also examined. There were no language restrictions. Our primary outcome measures were labour analgesia requiremen...