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Preconception care crucial to improving maternal and infant health
September 20, 2006Continued improvements in the infant and maternal mortality rates will depend on interventions before a woman becomes pregnant, according to officials from the March of Dimes, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other experts.
Since nearly half of all pregnancies are unintended, the preconception period - the time before a woman becomes pregnant - is crucial to reducing many of the risks of birth defects and premature birth. Every visit to the doctor for women of childbearing age should be considered an opportunity to discuss reproductive health, the experts wrote.
Nearly 85 percent of women receive early prenatal care, which has contributed to the improvements in maternal and infant health. But, continued progress in reducing the infant and maternal mortality rates and preventing premature birth and low birth weight babies has slowed in recent years; the focus must now shift to the preconception period.
"We can't wait for new medical breakthroughs. We must take what we know and use it now," said Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes, one of the co-authors. "Even early prenatal care may be too late to make a difference in some cases. Some interventions work best - and others only work - if they begin before pregnancy."
"Preconception Care for Improving Perinatal Outcomes: The Time to Act," was published online today as part of a supplement of the Maternal and Child Health Journal. It contains nearly three dozen research articles on preconception care outlining areas where women and doctors can focus to improve the chance of having a health baby.
Included in the supplement are ten recommendations designed to make preconception health care part of routine medical visits so that risk factors can be identified before pregnancy, assisting doctors in offering women additional services to reduce the risk of premature birth and birth defects.
The Journal's supplement includes articles about the use of medication during pregnancy, information about physician beliefs and opinions about preconception care and their practices, genetic risks, the use of multivitamins (including folic acid) to prevent birth defects, as well as the impact obesity, depression, and chronic diseases have on pregnancy. Nearly a third of the articles were co-authored by March of Dimes experts.
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
"We can't wait for new medical breakthroughs. We must take what we know and use it now," said Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes, one of the co-authors. "Even early prenatal care may be too late to make a difference in some cases. Some interventions work best - and others only work - if they begin before pregnancy."
"Preconception Care for Improving Perinatal Outcomes: The Time to Act," was published online today as part of a supplement of the Maternal and Child Health Journal. It contains nearly three dozen research articles on preconception care outlining areas where women and doctors can focus to improve the chance of having a health baby.
Included in the supplement are ten recommendations designed to make preconception health care part of routine medical visits so that risk factors can be identified before pregnancy, assisting doctors in offering women additional services to reduce the risk of premature birth and birth defects.
The Journal's supplement includes articles about the use of medication during pregnancy, information about physician beliefs and opinions about preconception care and their practices, genetic risks, the use of multivitamins (including folic acid) to prevent birth defects, as well as the impact obesity, depression, and chronic diseases have on pregnancy. Nearly a third of the articles were co-authored by March of Dimes experts.
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
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Childbearing is associated directly with future development of the metabolic syndrome - abdominal obesity, high triglycerides, insulin resistance and other cardiovascular disease risk factors - and for women who have had gestational diabetes, the risk is more than twice greater.
Genetic test for spinal muscular atrophy should be offered to all couples, says the ACMG
Carrier screening for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)-a serious genetic disease affecting approximately 1 in 10,000 infants that causes progressive muscle weakness and death-should be made available to all families, according to a new practice guideline issued by the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG).
New study indicates link between weight gains during pregnancy and dieting history
Women who have a history of dieting or other restricted eating practices are at risk of gaining an inappropriate amount of weight during pregnancy.
Aggressive efforts needed to curb maternal obesity
Most women get it - smoking and drinking don't mix with pregnancy, but not so with excess weight before and during pregnancy.
NICE gives backing for the use of advanced biological therapies to treat severe psoriasis
The UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has today issued guidance for the use of the targeted biological therapies, Enbrel® (etanercept) and Raptiva® (efalizumab), to treat adult patients with severe plaque psoriasis.
Ultrasounds show mothers' drinking shrinks fetal brain
Routine ultrasounds show that heavy drinkers who continue to imbibe after learning they are pregnant may carry fetuses with reduced skull and brain growth compared to those of abstainers or quitters, says a new study.
Sex selection for social reasons unlikely to skew gender balance in Germany and UK
Allowing sex selection for social reasons would be highly unlikely to skew the gender balance - at least in Germany and the UK - according to new research published today (Thursday 25 September) in Europe's leading reproductive medicine journal Human Reproduction[1]. Surveys of more than 1,000 men and women in each country did reveal differences between the two countries, with the British expressing stronger gender preferences and the Germans being more relaxed about the sex of their children. The UK respondents were also much keener than the Germans on the idea of using reproductive technology to choose the sex of their babies. But, as more than two thirds of the British expressed a wish to
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