Objective During labor the fetal head is subjected to pressure related to uterine contractions and maternal pushing. Here we systematically review what is known about fetal head compression and its effects on fetal intracranial pressure, oxygenation, blood flow and cerebral function, and the plausibility that it might cause isolated fetal brain injury. Study Design Systematic review of intrapar...

The fetus depends on an uninterrupted supply of oxygen to provide energy, not only for basal metabolism but also for the metabolic costs of growth. By curtailing the metabolically expensive processes of protein turnover, the fetus could conserve energy when oxygen availability is limited. Therefore, this investigation was performed to find whether protein synthesis and breakdown are diminished ...

OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to examine the clinical impact of specific fetal monitoring-related practices during induced labor. STUDY DESIGN This was a prospective, nonrandomized study. RESULTS We studied 14,398 women undergoing oxytocin induction of labor. A decrease in the infusion rate of oxytocin in the face of specified category II fetal heart rate tracings was associated ...

Thoracic gas volume (TGV), resting lung volume at end expiration, was measured by the plethysmographic technique in 9 infants with Werdnig-Hoffmann disease. Five of these infants were considered to have intrauterine onset of the disease; the mother in each case had reported a pronounced reduction in fetal activity during the last trimester of pregnancy, and 4 were found to be hypotonic at birth...