BACKGROUND The benefits of maternal health care to maternal and neonatal health outcomes have been well documented. Antenatal care attendance, institutional delivery and skilled attendance at delivery all help to improve maternal and neonatal health. However, use of maternal health services is still very low in developing countries with high maternal mortality including Ethiopia. This study exa...

Part I: Acupuncture and Pregnancy While becoming pregnant is wonderful news, especially for couples who have faced fertility challenges, it is only the beginning of the journey. Unfortunately, not all pregnancies are 40 weeks of smooth sailing. Some women are faced with more serious concerns, such as vaginal bleeding (and therefore presumed threatened miscarriages), giving rise to much stress a...

This article reviews the intersection between adolescent pregnancy and mental health. The research involving mental health risks for adolescent pregnancy and for parents who are teenagers are discussed. Depression and conduct disorder have emerged with the most attention. Research-based treatment of these disorders in adolescents is presented.

Background: Pre-pregnancy obesity and postpartum mental disorders are prevalent health risks to both the mother and the offspring. The objective of our study was to examine whether a history of childhood maltreatment is associated with pre-pregnancy obesity and postpartum mental health and whether childhood maltreatment and pre-pregnancy BMI independently predict postpartum mental health. Metho...

BACKGROUND Pakistan has alarmingly high numbers of maternal mortality along with suboptimal care-seeking behaviour. It is essential to identify the barriers and facilitators that women and families encounter, when deciding to seek maternal care services. This study aimed to understand health-seeking patterns of pregnant women in rural Sindh, Pakistan. METHODS A qualitative study was undertake...

There is some evidence that self-rated perceptions of health are predictive of objective health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, and mortality. The objective of this study was to examine the prospective association between perceptions of health during pregnancy and cardiovascular risk factors of mothers 21 years after the pregnancy. Data used were from the Mater University Study of P...