Predicting placental abruption and previa in women with a previous cesarean delivery

The purpose of this study was to determine if placental abruption or previa in women with a history of a prior cesarean delivery (CD) can be predicted. A retrospective cohort study of pregnant women with previous CD was conducted in 17 centers between 1996 and 2000. Women developing placenta previa or abruption in the subsequent pregnancy were compared with those without these complications. Bivariate and multivariable techniques were used to develop predictive models for placenta previa or abruption. The area under the receiver-operator characteristic curves, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of the models were compared. Among 25,076 women with prior CD, there were 361 (15 per 1000 births) with placenta previa and 309 (13 per 1000 births) with abruption. The significant risk factors for these complications include advanced maternal age, Asian race, increased parity, illicit drug use, history of spontaneous abortion, and three or more prior cesarean deliveries. Prediction models for abruption and previa had poor sensitivity (12% and 13% for abruption and previa, respectively). In women with at least one prior cesarean delivery, the risk factors for placental previa and abruption can be identified. However, prediction models combining these risk factors were too inefficient to be useful.

Informational factors influencing patient's childbirth preferences after prior cesarean

OBJECTIVE

A recent National Institutes of Health conference on cesarean concluded that the literature is lacking with regard to patients' childbirth preferences. The goal of this study was to examine how information patients received in pregnancy affects childbirth preferences and satisfaction.

STUDY DESIGN

In this cross-sectional study, questionnaires were issued to English- or Spanish-speaking women with prior cesarean, delivering by either vaginal birth after cesarean or repeat cesarean, at a large U.S. university hospital postpartum unit. Questions evaluated the adequacy of and satisfaction with information provided in counseling with regard to mode of delivery.

RESULTS

Eighty of 92 women approached completed the survey. The majority reported receiving no or too little information about forceps or vacuum delivery, future problems with urine or stool, fetal death, and injury.

CONCLUSION

Information that patients receive in pregnancy influences their childbirth preferences and satisfaction. Women wanted more information; particularly about urinary and fecal incontinence.

Postcesarean delivery adhesions associated with delayed delivery of infant

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to estimate the incidence of adhesions after cesarean deliveries and to determine their impact on delivery and infant well-being.

STUDY DESIGN

This was a retrospective cohort analysis with chart review. The charts of 542 women who had undergone primary (265 women) or repeat cesarean (277 women) deliveries were reviewed. The incidence, severity, and locations of adhesions; delivery time; cord blood pH, and Apgar scores were noted.

RESULTS

After the first cesarean delivery, 100 of 217 women (46%) had pelvic adhesive disease; 48 of 64 women (75%) who underwent a third cesarean delivery and 5 of 6 women (83%) who underwent a fourth cesarean delivery had formed pelvic adhesive disease. Compared with primary cesarean section, delivery of the infant was delayed 5.6 minutes (52%) with 1 previous cesarean birth, 8.5 minutes (79%) after 2 cesarean birth, and 18.1 (169%) during the fourth cesarean birth (P < 0.001 for all comparisons).

CONCLUSION

A high percentage of cesarean deliveries result in adhesive disease, which delays repeat cesarean delivery of the fetus. The potential for adhesive disease should be included in counseling regarding primary elective cesarean births.

[The effect of uterine incision expansion at caesarean delivery on perioperative haemorrhage: a prospective randomised clinical trial]

To determine if blunt or sharp expansion of the uterus at caesarean delivery is associated with increased maternal peripartum haemorrhage as estimated by the drop in hematocrit. Prospective randomised intention to treat clinical trial of women undergoing elective or urgent caesarean delivery at at least 36 weeks gestation. Two study groups were formed; after an initial hysterotomy which consisted in a transverse uterine incision of the lower segment, in the blunt group, the surgeon's indexes expanded the initial incision bilaterally and cephalad; in the sharp group, expansion of the initial incision was made using scissors. The primary outcome measure was the mean drop in hematocrit and p < 0.05 was considered significant. Three hundred women were randomised: 153 to the sharp group and 147 to the blunt group. The demographic and clinical characteristics of the two populations were similar. There were no statistically significant differences between the groups in estimated blood loss as assessed by the mean drop in hematocrit (%) (respectively 1.71 +/- 3.18 versus blunt group 1.91 +/- 3.28 p = 0.58 non significant). Our findings support that sharp or blunt expansion of hysterotomy during caesarean section equally affect blood loss as estimated by drop in hematocrit.

A prova de trabalho e a via de parto em primíparas com uma cesárea anterior

OBJECTIVE

To identify factors associated with cesarean section in women with only one previous delivery by cesarean section and undergoing a trial of labor.

METHODS

A retrospective cross sectional study was performed from 1986 to 1998 including a total of 1746 women with one prior cesarean section and delivering after a trial of labor. Cases with a current twin pregnancy or with malformation incompatible with life were excluded. Women were divided in two groups according to the mode of the second delivery: Cesarean (n=731) or Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC, n=1015). To identify factors associated to the mode of delivery, the prevalence ratios (PR) and the 95%CI for each isolated factor, adjusted according to age, were assessed. In each analysis, cases with missing information were excluded.

RESULTS

The total rate of Vaginal Birth After Cesarean was 58.1%. The factors significantly associated with cesarean section were: higher maternal age, greater fundal height (PR 1.5; 95%CI 1.19-1.88), premature rupture of membranes (1.3; 1.08-1.54), amniotic fluid with an altered aspect (1.22; 1.04-1.43) or volume (1.32; 1.01-1.73), altered fetal heart rate (1.96; 1.68-2.28), non cephalic presentation (2.03; 1.54-2.66), induction of labor (1.74; 1.42-2.11) and no labor analgesia (2.57; 2.11-3.11).

CONCLUSION

The factors associated with cesarean section were older age, non-cephalic presentation, premature rupture of membranes, signs of large fetus, the need of induction of labor and signs of compromised fetal wellbeing.

An unusual case of Youssef's syndrome (vesicouterine fistula) and its relationship with placenta percreta

A pregnant lady, on antenatal ultrasound examination, was found to have placenta percreta involving the bladder. After cesarean section, she developed the typical triad of Youssef's syndrome i.e. cyclic hematuria and amenorrhea without vaginal leakage of urine. Cystoscopy showed a vesicouterine fistula which was treated through the transabdominal approach.

False-positive quadruple screen test for trisomy 18 in a patient with a fetus with Bloom's syndrome

In the literature, conflicting reports on the significance of false-positive maternal serum multiple marker testing for trisomy 18 are encountered; however, the biology of this finding is discussed infrequently. We present such a case in association with Bloom's syndrome in the fetus. The fetus had intrauterine growth restriction, seen early in the second trimester, oligohydramnios, and was delivered at 34 weeks of gestation for impending fetal compromise. We propose that the adverse outcome of the pregnancy with false-positive serum analyte testing for trisomy 18 might result from a small-sized placenta and perhaps pathology at receptor level.

Incidence and determinants of peripartum hysterectomy

OBJECTIVE

Most studies of peripartum hysterectomy are conducted in single institutions, limiting the ability to provide national incidence estimates and examine risk factors. The objective of this study was to provide a national estimate of the incidence of peripartum hysterectomy and to examine factors associated with the procedure.

METHODS

We used data for 1998-2003 from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample, an annual nationally representative survey of inpatient hospitalizations. Peripartum hysterectomy was defined as a hysterectomy and delivery occurring during the same hospitalization. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were adjusted for maternal and hospital characteristics using logistic regression.

RESULTS

During 1998-2003, an estimated 18,339 peripartum hysterectomies occurred in the United States (0.77 per 1,000 deliveries). Compared with vaginal delivery without a previous cesarean delivery, the ORs of peripartum hysterectomy for other delivery types were as follows: repeat cesarean, 8.90 (95% CI 8.09-9.79); primary cesarean, 6.54 (95% CI 5.95-7.18); and vaginal birth after cesarean, 2.70 (95% CI 2.23-3.26). Multiple births were associated with an increased risk compared with singleton births (OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.16-1.71).

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that vaginal birth after cesarean, primary and repeat cesarean deliveries, and multiple births are independently associated with an increased risk for peripartum hysterectomy. These findings may be of concern, given the increasing rate of both cesarean deliveries and multiple births in the United States.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

III.

Transient gestational diabetes insipidus diagnosed in successive pregnancies: review of pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and management of delivery

Gestational diabetes insipidus (GDI) is a rare disorder characterised by polyuria, polydypsia, and excessive thirst usually manifesting in the third trimester of pregnancy. The etiology is thought to depend on excessive vasopressinase activity, a placental enzyme that degrades arginine-vasopressin (AVP), but not 1-deamino-8-D: -arginine vasopressin (dDAVP), which is a synthetic form. This is a transient syndrome and may be associated with acute fatty liver of pregnancy and preeclampsia. The use of dDAVP in symptomatic cases has been proven as a safe method for both the mother and the fetus during the pregnancy. We report a case of recurrent gestational diabetes insipidus in successive pregnancies, which responded to dDAVP and subsided after delivery.

Cesarean Delivery on Maternal Request

OBJECTIVE

To review systematically the evidence about maternal and infant outcomes of cesarean delivery on maternal request and planned vaginal delivery.

DATA SOURCES

We searched MEDLINE, Cochrane Collaboration resources, and Embase and identified 1,406 articles through dual review using a priori inclusion criteria.

METHODS OF STUDY SELECTION

We included English language studies published from 1990 to June 2005 that compared the key reference group (cesarean delivery on maternal request or proxies) and planned vaginal delivery.

TABULATION, INTEGRATION, AND RESULTS

We identified 54 articles for maternal and infant outcomes. Virtually no studies exist on cesarean delivery on maternal request, so the knowledge base rests on indirect evidence from proxies with unique and significant limitations. Most studies compared outcomes by actual routes of delivery, resulting in variable relevance to planned routes of delivery. Primary cesarean delivery on maternal request and planned vaginal delivery likely differ with respect to individual outcomes; for instance, risks of urinary incontinence and maternal hemorrhage were lower with planned cesarean, whereas the risk of neonatal respiratory morbidity was higher and maternal length of stay was longer with planned cesarean delivery. However, our comprehensive assessment, across many outcomes, suggests no major differences between primary cesarean delivery on maternal request and planned vaginal delivery, but the evidence is too weak to conclude definitively that differences are completely absent. If a woman chooses to have a cesarean delivery in her first delivery, she is more likely to have subsequent deliveries by cesarean. With increasing numbers of cesarean delivery, risks occur with increasing frequency.

CONCLUSION

The evidence is significantly limited by its minimal relevance to primary cesarean delivery on maternal request. Future research requires developing consensus about terminology, creating a minimum data set for cesarean delivery on maternal request, improving study design and statistical analyses, attending to major outcomes and their special measurement issues, assessing both short- and long-term outcomes with better measurement strategies, dealing better with confounders, and considering the value or utility of different outcomes.

Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura Masquerading as Hemolysis, Elevated Liver Enzymes, Low Platelets (HELLP) Syndrome in Late Pregnancy

BACKGROUND

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura rarely presents during late pregnancy or immediately postpartum. This report describes the clinical course of a patient considered to have hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelets (HELLP) syndrome but later determined to have thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

CASE

At 37 weeks of gestation, a multiparous woman was diagnosed with HELLP syndrome. She received high-dose dexamethasone, magnesium, antihypertensives, and platelets before delivery. Over the next 36 hours, renal function acutely worsened and death ensued. One week after death a plasma ADAMTS13 activity of 4% was reported.

CONCLUSION

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura can mimic HELLP syndrome late in gestation. Lack of response to dexamethasone within 12-24 hours and atypical relationships among laboratory values are two clues that thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura may be the underlying pathology and that plasma exchange is emergently needed.

[Caesarean section scar pregnancy--various treatment alternatives]

Pregnancy in a Caesarean section scar is rare but possibly life-threatening because of the risk of rupture and excessive bleeding. We describe here a case of a pregnant woman with previous Caesarean section. She had no symptoms of ectopic pregnancy, but a transvaginal sonography showed a live seven-week pregnancy in the Caesarean section scar. To terminate the pregnancy and conserve the uterus, she was treated medically with methotrexate and mifepristone, with no effect. Transvaginal intrathoracic injection of 1 mmol of potassium chloride was then performed. After this, the patient's serum HCG level dropped.

Successful Term Pregnancy after B-Lynch Compression Suture in a Previous Pregnancy on Account of Massive Primary Postpartum Hemorrhage

A case is presented of a successful term pregnancy in a 28-year-old secundipara after previous Misgav-Ladach cesarean section and B-Lynch compression suture on account of massive postpartal hemorrhage caused by uterine atony. On account of dystocia and relative cephalopelvic disproportion, secondary repeated cesarean section was performed; she gave birth to a live child 3,900 g/52 cm, Apgar score 9/10, with a regular neonatal course. During the repeated cesarean section, thin laces of connective tissue were found along the sutures placed on the uterus during the previous B-Lynch operation. Pelvic and intrauterine adhesions were not found.

An unusual presentation of a pituitary tumour in the early postpartum period

The case of a parturient, who first presented with a partial oculomotor nerve palsy shortly after caesarean delivery while participating in a clinical trial, is presented. The anaesthesia for the caesarean delivery involved a combined spinal-epidural with intrathecal bupivacaine and postoperative epidural pethidine patient-controlled analgesia. The trial was examining the possible effects of magnesium infusions on acute and chronic pain. The partial oculomotor nerve palsy was an unusual presentation and the signs and symptoms were transient. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed the presence of a presumed pituitary macroadenoma. Possible reasons for the timing of onset and the rapid resolution of symptoms, and the implications and management of pituitary pathology in the peripartum period, are considered. The uncomplicated course of a later caesarean delivery in the same patient, using the same anaesthesia technique, is also noted.

Essai de travail en cas de césarienne antérieure

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this review was to relate the evolution of obstetrical management of delivery in women who had previously undergone cesarean delivery and to search the studies supporting the choice of the mode of delivery.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

We identified relevant studies through a computer search in the Medline database.

RESULTS

After a period from 1980 to 2000 when the vaginal delivery had been increasingly recommended, a growth in the use of the planned cesarean delivery was observed. Recent studies report more evidence that uterine rupture is the result of trial of labor and that adverse perinatal outcomes are associated with uterine rupture. The risk of uterine rupture is increased with labor induction. The use of prostaglandins appears to be implicated in a significant increase of uterine rupture, and subsequently might be contraindicated in this situation. The use of oxytocin induced labor appears to increase the risk of uterine rupture. However, the level of adverse perinatal outcomes is low. The choice of the mode of delivery should take into account the likelihood of a further pregnancy, due to the increased risk of placental pathologic conditions depending on the number of repeated cesarean sections.

CONCLUSION

An optimal decision for the mode of delivery should be shared with the pregnant women and all these factors should be taken into consideration.

Asymptomatic abdominal wall endometrioma 15 years after cesarean section

Abdominal wall endometriosis is rare and its diagnosis is difficult. However, the consequences may be serious, like recurrences or even malignant transformation. We report a rarer case of asymptomatic abdominal wall endometrioma, accidentally found during a surgical procedure for a second cesarean section, in a 39-years old patient, without any relevant history of endometriosis. The tumor was subcutaneous, 3/3 cm in size, located in the left angle of the incision from the 15 years previously performed cesarean section and freely mobile in relation with the skin and the fascia. It was excised, with clear margins (to prevent recurrences), during the procedure. The patient was discharged after five days. The postoperative period and the follow-up at one and three months were uneventful. The pathological examination clarified the diagnosis by revealing an endometrioma with decidual reaction. Such a condition may be, therefore, evoked before an abdominal wall tumor, even without specific symptoms, even in a 39-years old woman and longtime after the possible causal surgery. Pathological examination remains the ultimate diagnostic tool. Relevant prophylactic attitude at the end of the cesarean section may be considered.

Anesthesia for the repeat cesarean section in the parturient with abnormal placentation: What does an obstetrician need to know?

Placenta accreta is an abnormal adherence of the placenta to the uterine wall owing to an absent or faulty decidua basalis. The incidence of this devastating problem is increasing secondary to the increased incidence of Cesarean section. Although rare, the diagnosis of placenta accreta may lead to life-threatening complications (e.g., fatal hemorrhage) and significantly impact the obstetric and anesthetic management of these parturients. I herein present the case of a pregnant patient with abnormal placentation and review the current state-of-the-art obstetric and anesthetic management of this complication.

Making choices for childbirth: a randomized controlled trial of a decision-aid for informed birth after cesarean

BACKGROUND

Decision-making about mode of birth after a cesarean delivery presents challenges to women and their caregivers and requires a balance of risks and benefits according to individual circumstances. The study objective was to determine whether a decision-aid for women who have experienced previous cesarean birth facilitates informed decision-making about birth options during a subsequent pregnancy.

METHOD

A prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial of 227 pregnant women was conducted within 3 prenatal clinics and 3 private obstetric practices in New South Wales, Australia. Women with 1 previous cesarean section and medically eligible for trial of vaginal birth were recruited at 12 to 18 weeks' gestation; 115 were randomized to the intervention group and 112 to the control group. A decision-aid booklet describing risks and benefits of elective repeat cesarean section and trial of labor was given to intervention group women at 28 weeks' gestation. Main outcome measures included level of knowledge, decisional conflict score, women's preference for mode of birth, and recorded mode of birth.

RESULTS

Women who received the decision-aid demonstrated a significantly greater increase in mean knowledge scores than the control group (increasing by 2.17 vs 0.42 points on a 15-point scale) (p < 0.001, 95% CI for difference = 1.15-2.35). The intervention group demonstrated a reduction in decisional conflict score (p < 0.05). The decision-aid did not significantly affect the rate of uptake of trial of labor or elective repeat cesarean section. Preferences expressed at 36 weeks were not consistent with actual birth outcomes for many women.

CONCLUSION

A decision-aid for women facing choices about birth after cesarean section is effective in improving knowledge and reducing decisional conflict. However, little evidence suggested that this process led to an informed choice. Strategies are required to better equip organizations and practitioners to empower women so that they can translate informed preferences into practice. Further work needs to examine ways to enhance women's power in decision-making within the doctor-patient relationship.

Myasthenia gravis and pregnancy

Myasthenia Gravis with pregnancy is a rare concomitance. This case report describes successful outcome of all pregnancies in a lady with this problem. The management is described.

Epidural anesthesia in a parturient with neurofibromatosis type 2 undergoing cesarean section

Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) is a rare condition only recently recognized. We present a case describing successful regional analgesia in a parturient with NF2 after thorough imaging revealed no tumors within the epidural space. The presence of tumors within the spinal cord and nerve roots and their potential enlargement during pregnancy make routine neuraxial anesthesia hazardous in patients with NF2. Lumbosacral imaging before performing regional anesthesia is recommended.