Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):251-263
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400008
The human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) results from a non-covalent linkage of two subunits, alpha (alphahCG) and beta (betahCG), separately synthesized by normal trophoblastic tissue, hydatiform mole, choriocarcinoma, pituitary cells, and tumoral tissues of different histologic types. The peptide chain and its further glycosylation in the secretory cell involves the complex action of different enzymes. This complexity results in the secretion of heterogeneous molecular forms. The different molecules might be found in serum, urine and amniotic fluid of pregnant women; serum, urine, and vesicles of patients with hydatiform mole or choriocarcinoma and in other biological fluids of normal non-pregnant women and men or patients with different embryonary types of cancer. Both the intact hCG molecule and its free subunits and the hyperglycosylated (H-hCG), nicked (N-hCG) and core fragment of betahCG (CF- betahCG) variant forms have relevant clinical use. Depending on the prevalent molecular form or the proportion of the variant form to the intact hCG in a determined clinical situation the measurement of a specific molecule is chosen. This review analyzes the clinical use of hCG and its related molecules in the early detection of ectopic pregnancy or patients with higher risk of abortion, in the identification of an embryo or fetus with chromosomal abnormalities, and in the evaluation of risk for preeclampsia or fetal growth restriction. The review also examines the use of hCG and variant forms as tumor markers. It is concluded that it is useful to measure hCG and/or related molecules in clinical practice, but difficulties in developing and achievement of more sensitive and specific new assays limit their use.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):211-213
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):214-219
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400002
PURPOSE: to evaluate the characteristics of mammography use and the social demographic profile of women accessing public and private health care services. METHODS: a cross-sectional study was carried out in the city of Taubaté, southeast Brazil. Six hundred and forty-three women who underwent mammographic examinations in the available health care services were interviewed, 472 of them in public and 171 in private health services. The social demographic and reproductive profiles of the women interviewed and the characteristics of the mammography use, such as the proportion of the women interviewed who had been previously screened, the age when the screening began, the interval between the screenings and their frequency, were evaluated by means of the Fisher exact, Wilcoxon and chi2 tests. RESULTS: the mean age of the interviewed women was similar in both studied groups. The proportion of women previously screened 54.2 and 79.5% in public and private services, respectively as well as the age when the screening began 46.8 years (SD 10.2%) in public services and 40.2 years (SD 7.7) in private services differed significantly (p<0.01). Twenty-five percent of women older than 50 years did not follow the adequate standards of periodic screening. CONCLUSIONS: the way of accessing health services has influenced the proportion of women previously screened and the age at which this screening began, being more adequate in the private health system. Although there was a later start in the public health services, the age when the mammographic screening began was earlier than the current official recommendations. There has been a failure of compliance with mammographic screening in women older than 50 years, in both researched groups.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):220-226
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400003
PURPOSE: to verify the possibility of identifying oocytes that would result in a higher fertilization rate. METHODS: retrospective analysis of the fertilization rate after ICSI of 957 oocytes in metaphase II according to three morphology parameters: cytoplasm inclusions, thickness of the perivitelline space, and fragmentation of the first polar body. Oocytes were obtained from 115 cycles performed among 107 women attended at the "Centro de Reprodução Humana de Campinas", from April to December of 2004. For the statistical analysis of differences in the fertilization rate between 'normal' oocytes and those presenting each alteration, the chi2 test was used with confidence levels of 5 and 10%. RESULTS: no significant difference in fertilization rate was observed regarding characteristics of the polar body or thickness of the perivitelline space. Fertilization rate among oocytes with perivitelline space with debris was 14 percentage points lower than among oocytes with absent space (p=0.055) and the rate among oocytes with granular cytoplasm was seven percentage points lower than among oocytes with normal cytoplasm (p<0.10>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: the morphological parameters of oocytes currently being evaluated do not allow us to clearly distinguish those that would lead to a higher fertilization rate and could be used in clinical practice.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):227-231
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400004
PURPOSE: to evaluate histomorphometric changes in the rat myometrium upon treatment with isoflavones, as compared with estrogens, using histological and morphometric techniques. METHODS: twenty-eight oophorectomized adult rats were randomly divided into four treatment groups: GPropi = propylene glycol (control); GExtr10 - 10 mg/kg soybean extract; GExtr300 - 300 mg/kg soy bean extract; GCee - 200 µg/kg conjugated equine estrogens (Cee). Drugs or drug vehicle were administered by gavage once a day for 21 days. Upon sacrifice, the uteri were removed and weighed. Fragments of uterine horns were collected and fixed in 10% formaldehyde and processed for paraffin inclusion. The histological sections were stained by hematoxylin and eosin and evaluated microscopically by means of an image analyzer to quantify the myometrial thickness and the number of blood vessels and eosinophils. The data were studied by analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the Tukey-Kramer multiple comparison test. RESULTS: isoflavones in the concentration of 300 mg/kg induced a significant increase in the myometrium thickness (GExtr300=25.6±5.0 mm) compared to control (GPropi=5.5±0.5 mm). The effect of this high dose is similar to the estrogen effect (GCee=27.5±7.9 mm). In low doses (10 mg/kg), the effect was similar to control. Isoflavones (GExtr300) induced also an increase in the number of blood vessels (GPropi=3.5±1.6; GExtr300=10.2±3.6 vessels/mm²) and of eosinophils (CPropi=0.15±0.01; GExtr300=4.3±0.9 eosinophils/mm²). These effects were comparable to those produced by Cee treatment in GCee (9.2±1.1 eosinophils/mm²). CONCLUSION: a high-dose treatment with isoflavones (300 mg/kg per day, 21 days) elicited an estrogen-like, highly significant proliferative action on the rat myometrium.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):232-237
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400005
PURPOSE: to identify maternal and perinatal factors related to neonates with birthweight >4,000 g. METHODS: cross-section cohort study with 411 consecutive cases of fetal macrosomia (FM) which occurred from March 1998 to March 2005. Data were compared to 7,349 cases of fetal birthweight >2,500 and <3,999 g which occurred in the same period. Maternal variables (maternal age, parity, diabetes, previous cesarean section, meconium-stained amniotic fluid, cephalopelvic disproportion, main cesarean section indications) and perinatal variables (birth injury, <7 1-min and 5-min Apgar score, fetal and early neonatal mortality range, need of neonatal intensive care unit) were analyzed. For statistical analysis the chi2 test with Yates correction and Student's t test were used with the level of significance set at 5%. RESULTS: FM was significantly associated with older mothers, more parous and <7 1-min Apgar score (p<0.05; OR=1.8; 95% CI: 1,4-2.5) and <7 5-min Apgar score (p<0,05; OR=2.3; 95% CI: 1.3-4,1), diabetes mellitus (p<0.05; OR=4.2; 95% CI: 2.7-6.4), meconium-stained amniotic fluid (p<0.02; OR=1.3; 95% CI: 1.0-1.7), need of neonatal intensive care unit (p<0,05; OR=2.0; 95% CI: 1.5-2.7), early neonatal mortality (p<0,05; OR = 2.7; 95% CI: 1.0-6.7), cesarean section (p < 0.05; OR = 2.03; 95% CI: 1,6-2,5) and cephalopelvic disproportion (p < 0.05;OR = 2.8; 95% CI: 1.6-4,8). There was no statistical difference between birth injury and fetal mortality range. In the FM group the main cesarean section indications were repeat cesarean sections (11.9%) and cephalopelvic disproportion (8.6%); in the normal birthweight group, repeat cesareans (8.3%) and fetal distress during labor (3.9%). CONCLUSIONS: in spite of the characteristic limitations of a retrospective evaluation, the analysis demonstrated which complications were associated with large fetal size, being useful in obstetric handling of patients with a diagnosis of extreme fetal growth. FM remains an obstetric problem of difficult solution, associated with important maternal and perinatal health problems, due to the significant observed rates of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality in developed and developing countries.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):238-243
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400006
PURPOSE: to evaluate the relationship between S/A ratio in ductus venosus (DV) and perinatal outcomes in fetuses with brain sparing reflex. METHODS: the study was designed as an observational, sectional study with prospectively collected data. Forty-one fetuses with brain sparing reflex and gestational age between 25 and 33 weeks were studied between November 2002 and July 2005. The newborns were observed during the neonatal period in the intensive care unit of "Clínica Perinatal Laranjeiras" in order to find adverse outcomes. The study population was divided into two groups according to DV assessment. In the normal group all the fetuses with S/A ratio values of 3.6 or less were included, and in the abnormal group the fetuses with values of S/A ratio greater than 3.6. The statistical analysis was performed by the Mann-Whitney U-test, chi2 test and Fisher exact test. The results were considered significant when p<0.05. Gestational age, birth weight and Apgar score less than 7 at 5 min were evaluated. Perinatal outcome parameters were: intrauterine death, neonatal mortality, seizures, intraventricular hemorrhage, leukomalacia, need of surfactant, mechanical ventilation, myocardical failure, necrotizing enterocolitis, and length of stay in the intensive care unit. RESULTS: among the assessed 41 fetuses, 26 (63.4%) showed normal DV S/A ratio and the other 15 (36.6%) developed an abnormal DV S/A ratio (>3.6). There was no statistically signicant difference between the groups according to gestational age at delivery and Apgar <7. The only significant association was between abnormal DV S/A ratio and neonatal death (p=0.049; Fisher's exact test). No statistically significant association was observed for the other studied variables. CONCLUSIONS: our results suggest that abnormal DV blood flow detected by Doppler examination is not associated with adverse perinatal outcomes, except for neonatal mortality. This association may be considered statistically borderline (p=0.049). Excluding fetuses with birth weight less than 400 g, there was no other association between DV and neonatal mortality. The abnormal DV S/A ratio was not associated, in our study, with perinatal mortality in viable preterm fetuses.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(4):244-250
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000400007
Osteogenesis imperfecta is a connective tissue disorder due to quantitative and qualitative anomalies in type 1 collagen, genetically transmitted by a dominant or recessive autosomal gene, leading to bone fragility. We report a case of a 19-year-old G1 PO patient referred to our institution following a screening ultrasound that demonstrated short limb fetal extremities. A level 3 scan was performed which evidenced an irregular cranial shape and compression of the cephalic pole with moderate transducer pressure. Limb shortening, decreased echoes and fractures of long bones were found on our scan evaluation. A vaginal delivery occurred at 35 weeks of gestation. The male newborn, weighing 1.990 grams had 6 and 8 in Apgar scores. The neonate was clearly abnormal, presenting irregular cranial shape, with poor ossification on X-ray, blue sclera, fractures and limb deformities. Postnatal evaluation was satisfactory and the neonate was discharged in good conditions. Prenatal diagnosis is important for an adequate pregnancy follow-up. Postnatal outcome was not related to vaginal delivery, as there were no recent fractures in the newborn.