Reproductive medicine Archives - Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2011;33(5):252-262
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032011000500008
Brazil is among the countries with the highest cesarean section rates, especially in the supplementary health sector. However, some characteristics are similar in both the public and private sectors in terms of the wishes and expectations of pregnant women regarding their delivery. There is a preference for vaginal delivery among women of all social, economic, and cultural levels, a fact that shifts the focus of the negative influence of this variable from women to other subjects involved in delivery care. No isolated factor is able to justify the complexity of making a decision for cesarean section, but the physician and the type of hospital are the main associated factors. The several harmful effects of a non-judicious performance of cesarean section are scientifically recognized. It is important to raise the awareness of doctors and of other health professionals about the real consequences of this decision, the ethical deviations when conducts are chosen without exclusively focusing on the patient`s health, and the need for constant updating for the management of the various possible conditions of childbirth.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2011;33(5):252-262
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032011000500008
Brazil is among the countries with the highest cesarean section rates, especially in the supplementary health sector. However, some characteristics are similar in both the public and private sectors in terms of the wishes and expectations of pregnant women regarding their delivery. There is a preference for vaginal delivery among women of all social, economic, and cultural levels, a fact that shifts the focus of the negative influence of this variable from women to other subjects involved in delivery care. No isolated factor is able to justify the complexity of making a decision for cesarean section, but the physician and the type of hospital are the main associated factors. The several harmful effects of a non-judicious performance of cesarean section are scientifically recognized. It is important to raise the awareness of doctors and of other health professionals about the real consequences of this decision, the ethical deviations when conducts are chosen without exclusively focusing on the patient`s health, and the need for constant updating for the management of the various possible conditions of childbirth.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(7):388-396
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000700003
PURPOSE: to generate knowledge in order to allow of the determination the factors affecting the high incidence of caesarean section and its relation to sterilization. METHODS: the multicentric study on reproductive health in Brazil, carried out from 1998 to 2000, included the States of Rio Grande do Norte, Minas Gerais, São Paulo, and Rio Grande do Sul. It was characterized as a longitudinal study, where the women, proceeding from public as well as private health services, were interviewed at three moments: at the beginning of pregnancy (until the 22nd week of gestation), at the end of pregnancy (between 30 and 40 days before the probable date of childbirth) and after delivery (between 15 and 45 days after childbirth). The interviewed women complied with the following eligibility criteria: to have 18 to 40 years of age, to live in Natal and plan to deliver the baby in Natal. At the first moment, 433 women were interviewed, 380 at the second moment and 269 at the third moment. The data were submitted to the chi-square test, with the level of significance set at 0.05, just to assure the relation between the variable years of schooling (0 to 8 and 9 or +) and the representative variables for reproductive health. RESULTS: the result disclosed a statistically significant relationship (p<0.05) between the variables: years of schooling, parity, type of service used, social class, job status, and prenatal consultations. It was found that a higher educational level is predominant among those women who searched for private services, coming from higher social classes and large number of prenatal visits. Although without statistical significance, having a for the women coming from this type of service, a higher number of caesarean section5 was observed, probably due to an easy doctor-patient interaction, while the planned caesarean section was frustrated for 43% of those women coming from public health services, as well as the wish to have a tubal ligation at childbirth (57%). CONCLUSIONS: These results show up the great differentials between the private and public services, with a clear favoritism for the private sector, demonstrating clearly that the practical obstetrics in Brazil needs a change and an improvement both for those women with access to the private service, who obtain the accomplishment of the caesarean section without consistent medical indications, and those with access to the public service, who face difficulties in accomplishing this procedure, even with consistent medical indications, in order to provide equality in the reproductive rights of those women.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(7):388-396
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000700003
PURPOSE: to generate knowledge in order to allow of the determination the factors affecting the high incidence of caesarean section and its relation to sterilization. METHODS: the multicentric study on reproductive health in Brazil, carried out from 1998 to 2000, included the States of Rio Grande do Norte, Minas Gerais, São Paulo, and Rio Grande do Sul. It was characterized as a longitudinal study, where the women, proceeding from public as well as private health services, were interviewed at three moments: at the beginning of pregnancy (until the 22nd week of gestation), at the end of pregnancy (between 30 and 40 days before the probable date of childbirth) and after delivery (between 15 and 45 days after childbirth). The interviewed women complied with the following eligibility criteria: to have 18 to 40 years of age, to live in Natal and plan to deliver the baby in Natal. At the first moment, 433 women were interviewed, 380 at the second moment and 269 at the third moment. The data were submitted to the chi-square test, with the level of significance set at 0.05, just to assure the relation between the variable years of schooling (0 to 8 and 9 or +) and the representative variables for reproductive health. RESULTS: the result disclosed a statistically significant relationship (p<0.05) between the variables: years of schooling, parity, type of service used, social class, job status, and prenatal consultations. It was found that a higher educational level is predominant among those women who searched for private services, coming from higher social classes and large number of prenatal visits. Although without statistical significance, having a for the women coming from this type of service, a higher number of caesarean section5 was observed, probably due to an easy doctor-patient interaction, while the planned caesarean section was frustrated for 43% of those women coming from public health services, as well as the wish to have a tubal ligation at childbirth (57%). CONCLUSIONS: These results show up the great differentials between the private and public services, with a clear favoritism for the private sector, demonstrating clearly that the practical obstetrics in Brazil needs a change and an improvement both for those women with access to the private service, who obtain the accomplishment of the caesarean section without consistent medical indications, and those with access to the public service, who face difficulties in accomplishing this procedure, even with consistent medical indications, in order to provide equality in the reproductive rights of those women.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(5):271-277
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000500002
PURPOSE: to evaluate the contraceptive methods adopted by the public health system of Maringá County, Paraná, regarding the orientations for using them, indications, contraindications and reasons for interrupting these methods, as well as the profile of the female users. METHODS: transversal descriptive study, performed through 284 home interviews with women selected from the 62 groups of the Family Health Program, after their free and informed consent, and after the questionnaire had been approved by the Ethics in Research Committee involving human beings of the State University of Maringá (Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM). Before applying the questionnaires, they were pretested, focusing on the following sections: characterization of the interviewee, socioeconomical factors and contraceptive methods. Results were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software 12.0 version. RESULTS: most women were white, married, between 35 and 49 years old, with high school education, working without salary, and from D and E economical classes. Of them, 22.5% were smokers and 4.9% alcohol users. Contraceptive pills were adopted by 50.3% of the women; condom by 28.1% and tubal ligature by 32%, following, in general, the health professional orientation. Reasons for interrupting the contraceptive methods were the wish to get pregnant, preference for a permanent method, and also because of the side effects of the pill. Smoking was the most prevalent risk factor for pill use. Only 35.9% of the interviewed women started using the pill after a previous medical visit, and almost in the same proportion, 33.6%, without visit before starting to use it. CONCLUSIONS: it was observed that the indications of the contraceptive method to be used, and the orientations accomplished by the health professionals were satisfactory, despite the high levels of tubal ligature and the detection of relative contraindications for pill users with more than 5 years of use.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(5):271-277
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000500002
PURPOSE: to evaluate the contraceptive methods adopted by the public health system of Maringá County, Paraná, regarding the orientations for using them, indications, contraindications and reasons for interrupting these methods, as well as the profile of the female users. METHODS: transversal descriptive study, performed through 284 home interviews with women selected from the 62 groups of the Family Health Program, after their free and informed consent, and after the questionnaire had been approved by the Ethics in Research Committee involving human beings of the State University of Maringá (Universidade Estadual de Maringá - UEM). Before applying the questionnaires, they were pretested, focusing on the following sections: characterization of the interviewee, socioeconomical factors and contraceptive methods. Results were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software 12.0 version. RESULTS: most women were white, married, between 35 and 49 years old, with high school education, working without salary, and from D and E economical classes. Of them, 22.5% were smokers and 4.9% alcohol users. Contraceptive pills were adopted by 50.3% of the women; condom by 28.1% and tubal ligature by 32%, following, in general, the health professional orientation. Reasons for interrupting the contraceptive methods were the wish to get pregnant, preference for a permanent method, and also because of the side effects of the pill. Smoking was the most prevalent risk factor for pill use. Only 35.9% of the interviewed women started using the pill after a previous medical visit, and almost in the same proportion, 33.6%, without visit before starting to use it. CONCLUSIONS: it was observed that the indications of the contraceptive method to be used, and the orientations accomplished by the health professionals were satisfactory, despite the high levels of tubal ligature and the detection of relative contraindications for pill users with more than 5 years of use.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2005;27(10):599-606
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032005001000006
PURPOSE: comparative analysis of the outcome of women with advanced pelvic endometriosis and women with tubal sterilization submitted to intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). METHODS: ninety-three infertile women, with normal menstrual cycle, without hormonal or surgical treatment during 12 months, body mass index of 20-25, ovaries with no tumors or cysts were included in the present study and divided into two groups: tubal sterilization (TUB), 39 women, and endometriosis (EDT), 54 women with III-EDT and IV-EDT, undergoing ovulatory induction using r-FSH and ICSI. Clinical and laboratorial data were compared. chi2, Fisher, Student's t, and Mann-Whitney tests were employed. RESULTS: lower estradiol levels (2,243.1 vs 1,666.3; p=0.001) and lower number of follicles per patient (16.9 vs 13.9, p=0.001) were noted in EDT group, in spite of more units of r-FSH (1,775.6 vs 1,998.6; p=0.007, for TUB and EDT, respectively). There were no differences in the rates of retrieved oocyte (69 vs 73.5%; p=0.071) as well as in normal fertilization rates (83.7 vs 81.7%; p=0.563, for TUB and EDT, respectively. However, lower number of top quality preembryos were obtained in patients from EDT group (36.5 vs 24.8%, TUB and EDT, respectively; p=0.005). Total pregnancy (41.0 vs 42.6%; p=0.950) and implantation rates (13.9 vs 14.5%; p=0.905) were not different when groups TUB and EDT were compared. CONCLUSIONS: ovaries of women from EDT group seem to be less responsive to ovulatory induction with r-FSH. EDT seems to impair the mean number of follicles and top quality preembryos with no impairment of retrieved oocyte and fertilization rates. However, once obtained, preembryos from EDT patients are able to exhibit similar implantation potential and pregnancy when compared with patients from TUB group.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2005;27(10):599-606
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032005001000006
PURPOSE: comparative analysis of the outcome of women with advanced pelvic endometriosis and women with tubal sterilization submitted to intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). METHODS: ninety-three infertile women, with normal menstrual cycle, without hormonal or surgical treatment during 12 months, body mass index of 20-25, ovaries with no tumors or cysts were included in the present study and divided into two groups: tubal sterilization (TUB), 39 women, and endometriosis (EDT), 54 women with III-EDT and IV-EDT, undergoing ovulatory induction using r-FSH and ICSI. Clinical and laboratorial data were compared. chi2, Fisher, Student's t, and Mann-Whitney tests were employed. RESULTS: lower estradiol levels (2,243.1 vs 1,666.3; p=0.001) and lower number of follicles per patient (16.9 vs 13.9, p=0.001) were noted in EDT group, in spite of more units of r-FSH (1,775.6 vs 1,998.6; p=0.007, for TUB and EDT, respectively). There were no differences in the rates of retrieved oocyte (69 vs 73.5%; p=0.071) as well as in normal fertilization rates (83.7 vs 81.7%; p=0.563, for TUB and EDT, respectively. However, lower number of top quality preembryos were obtained in patients from EDT group (36.5 vs 24.8%, TUB and EDT, respectively; p=0.005). Total pregnancy (41.0 vs 42.6%; p=0.950) and implantation rates (13.9 vs 14.5%; p=0.905) were not different when groups TUB and EDT were compared. CONCLUSIONS: ovaries of women from EDT group seem to be less responsive to ovulatory induction with r-FSH. EDT seems to impair the mean number of follicles and top quality preembryos with no impairment of retrieved oocyte and fertilization rates. However, once obtained, preembryos from EDT patients are able to exhibit similar implantation potential and pregnancy when compared with patients from TUB group.