NSIDRC Journal Article Alert — February 29, 2008
Prepared by the National Sudden Infant Death Resource Center
at Georgetown University.
This journal article alert provides selected items added to
the National Library of Medicine’s PubMed database in
the last week.
Past issues of NSIDRC journal alerts are available at http://www.sidscenter.org.
Availability of full-text journal articles is often limited to
subscribers or through inter-library loan. Please see
your local library for copies of these articles, or view PubMed's
How
to Get the Journal Article for
more details.
Sudden Infant Death
1: Sommerfield T, Chalmers J, Youngson G, Heeley C, Fleming
M, Thomson G.
The changing epidemiology of infantile hypertrophic pyloric
stenosis in Scotland.
Arch Dis Child. 2008 Feb 19 [Epub ahead of print]
Information Services Division, United Kingdom.
Background: The aetiology of infantile hypertrophic pyloric
stenosis (IHPS) has not been fully elicited. Since the 1990s,
a sharp decline in IHPS has been reported in various countries.
Recent research from Sweden reported a correlation between
falling rates of IHPS and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
This was attributed to a reduction in the number of infants
sleeping in the prone position following the "Back to
Sleep" campaign. Objectives 1. To describe the changing
epidemiology of IHPS in Scotland. 2. To examine the relationship
between IHPS and SIDS rates 3. To examine trends in other factors
that may explain the observed reduction in IHPS incidence.
Design: Incidence rates of IHPS and SIDS were derived from
routine data and their relationship analysed. Trends in mean
maternal age, maternal smoking, mean birth-weight and breastfeeding
rates were also examined. SETTING: The whole of Scotland between
1981 and 2004 RESULTS: IHPS incidence fell from 4.4 to 1.3
per 1000 live births in Scotland between 1981 and 2004. Rates
were consistently higher in males, although the overall incidence
patterns were similar. Rates showed a positive relationship
with deprivation. The fall in the incidence of IHPS preceded
the fall in SIDS by two years and the incidence of SIDS displayed
less variability than that of IHPS. Significant temporal trends
were also observed in other maternal and infant characteristics.
Conclusion: There has been a marked reduction in Scotland's
IHPS incidence but this is unlikely to be a consequence of
a change in infant sleeping position.
Other Infant Death
1: Altimier L.
Shaken baby syndrome.
J Perinat Neonatal Nurs. 2008 Jan-Mar;22(1):68-76.
Mercy Anderson Hospital, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Non-accidental head trauma in infants is the leading cause
of infant death from injury. Clinical features that suggest
head trauma (also known as shaken baby syndrome or shaken impact
syndrome) include the triad consisting of retinal hemorrhage,
subdural, and/or subarachnoid hemorrhage in an infant with
little signs of external trauma. Abusive head injuries are
among the most common causes of serious and lethal injuries
in children. These injuries may result from impact or shaking
or a combination of these mechanisms. These mechanisms cause
the child's head to undergo acceleration/ deceleration movements,
which may create inertial movement of the brain within the
cranial compartment.
Bereavement
1: Graham LK.
The value of observing an autopsy in clergy and pastoral care
education.
J Pastoral Care Counsel. 2007 Winter;61(4):365-78.
Autopsy Article Group, Iliff School of Theology, Denver, CO
80210, USA.
The value of observing an autopsy for clergy and students
training to provide pastoral care is that it raises consciousness
about death and dying, assists in the participants' healing
from loss, provides resources for ministering to the bereaved,
builds a network with other professionals responding to death
and dying, and evokes viscerally-generated insights into theological
questions concerning body and soul, life after death, and concepts
of God in relation to death and bereavement.
Miscarriage/Stillbirth/Pregnancy Issues
1: Malgarinos G, Gikas A, Delicha E, Stamataki A, Georgopoulos
F, Papadimitriou A, Stanciu C, Triantafillidis JK.
Pregnancy and inflammatory bowel disease: a prospective case-control
study.
Rev Med Chir Soc Med Nat Iasi. 2007 Jul-Sep;111(3):613-9.
Saint Panteleimon General State Hospital Nikea, Department
of Gastroenterology.
OBJECTIVE: Taking into account the relative confusion in the
literature concerning the influence of pregnancy on the underlying
inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and vice versa, as well as
the influence of drugs on the foetus and the gestation itself,
we performed this prospective study, in order to further elucidate
this interesting topic. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Prospective follow-up
study of 9 pregnant women with previously established IBD,
4 with ulcerative colitis (UC) and 5 with Crohn's disease (CD).
Results were compared to those of 9 non-pregnant women with
IBD with similar clinico-demographic characteristics (disease
control group), and 18 healthy pregnant women (healthy control
group). RESULTS: (a) Patients with IBD and gestation vs. healthy
control group: Significantly impaired body weight in newborns
from IBD mothers compared to healthy women (2530 ± 961
g vs. 3242 ± 582 g, P = 0.035) was found. Significantly
more cases of therapeutic or spontaneous abortion and premature
delivery in pregnant women with IBD compared to healthy pregnant
women [5/ 9(56.6%) vs 1/18 (5.6%), P = 0.008] were also noticed.
Concerning drug consumption, it was noticed that azathioprine
was taken regularly in one case of spontaneous abortion and
in one case of premature delivery. No significant differences
concerning other parameters such as smoking habit and death
of foetus were observed. (b) Patients with IBD and gestation
vs. patients with IBD without gestation: No significant differences
in the history of various parameters of the disease (number
of operations, presence of fistulas), previous gestations,
and course of the disease during the period of gestation were
found. (c) Course of the disease six months after delivery:
No significant differences between patients with IBD and pregnancy
and disease control group were noticed. CONCLUSION: It is concluded
that gestation in women with IBD is accompanied by some unwanted
events such as premature delivery, therapeutic or spontaneous
abortion, and reduced newborn body weight. Clinicians must
bear in mind the possibility of the appearance of some unwanted
events in pregnant women with IBD during
2: Sawka AM, Lakra DC, Lea J, Alshehri B, Tsang RW, Brierley
JD, Straus S, Thabane L, Gafni A, Ezzat S, George SR, Goldstein
DP.
A systematic review examining the effects of therapeutic radioactive
iodine on ovarian function and future pregnancy in female thyroid
cancer survivors.
Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2008 Feb 13 [Epub ahead of print]
Division of Endocrinology and Department of Medicine, University
Health Network Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Background: For women with differentiated thyroid carcinoma
(DTC), the effect of radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy on gonadal
and reproductive function is an important consideration. Objective
and Methods: We systematically reviewed controlled studies
examining the gonadal and reproductive effects of RAI therapy
in women and adolescents surviving DTC. We searched nine electronic
databases. All abstracts and papers were independently reviewed
by two reviewers. Results: After reviewing 349 unique citations
and 61 full-text papers, sixteen papers including data from
3023 women or adolescents with DTC, were included. All studies
were observational, with no long-term randomized control trial
data. The age at first RAI treatment varied from 8 to 50 years
and the cumulative activities of RAI administered for treatment
varied from 30 to 1099 mCi. Transient absence of menstrual
periods occurred in 8 to 27% of women within the first year
after RAI, particularly in older women. Also, RAI-treated women
experienced menopause at a slightly younger age than women
not treated with RAI. In the first year after RAI therapy,
several studies reported increased rates of spontaneous and
induced abortions. However, RAI treatment for DTC was generally
not associated with a significantly increased risk of long-term
infertility, miscarriage, induced abortions, stillbirths, or
offspring neonatal mortality or congenital defects. Conclusions:
In female survivors of DTC, there is little observational evidence
to suggest important adverse effects of RAI treatment on gonadal
function, fertility, or pregnancy outcomes beyond 12 months,
with the exception of a possible slightly earlier age of menopause.
Prepared by the
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