Pediatrics

Delay in aggressively treating out-of-control, unremitting vomiting in pregnancy can dehydrate, deplete, and nearly starve a woman and her fetus. This expert's approach tells you how to quickly distinguish developing hyperemesis gravidarum from something more benign.

Once a common cause of perinatal death, Rh disease is now quite rare in pregnant women, thanks in large part to advances in U/S and DNA technology. But the fact that roughly 7 out of every 1,000 liveborn infants are delivered by Rh-sensitized women emphasizes the need for more vigorous preventive efforts and up-to-date management skills.

There are several biological mechanisms behind the age-related drop in female fertility--and a number of tests to assess this decline.

Depression does occur in pregnant women and not just in those with preexisting mood symptoms. Knowing how to detect the disorder and when to refer is important because you may be the only physician these patients see during the perinatal period.

Studies leave little doubt that this nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agent can stop preterm labor. But the drug also needs to be administered wisely, and with several fetal complications in mind.

While insulin-sensitizing agents like metformin have proven useful in managing this disorder, mounting evidence indicates that rosiglitazone can also help induce ovulation and improve the metabolic profile in these patients.

Your patient has CIN, a precursor to cervical cancer. How do you manage her pregnancy? An expert pathologist provides algorithms and a step-by-step guide for safely biopsying a pregnant cervix-when appropriate.

Women need thorough and accurate information about the entire array of contraceptive options--new and old--so they can find their ideal method. Adherence--not efficacy--is the problem, and the hope is that greater choice will translate into fewer unintended pregnancies.

Antibiotics can prove invaluable in the treatment of mastitis, but before you prescribe them, it's important to distinguish breast engorgement from infectious mastitis.

Analgesics are everywhere, but that doesn't mean they're without risk. This timely review offers a balanced assessment of which ones pose the greatest threat.

With new research showing that aromatase inhibitors can dramatically cut the risk of recurring breast cancer, patients will probably have many questions about drugs like anastrozole and letrozole. Two experts review the scientific evidence on these valuable agents.

Considering how successful surgery is, how do you tell a young woman who's unable to have intercourse that she needs to learn to live with her pain? Even so, a surgical approach is only for carefully selected women--usually those with primary vestibulitis who have exhausted other treatment options.

Dual x-ray absorptiometry is still considered the gold standard for diagnosing osteoporosis and monitoring therapy, but considerable scientific evidence supports the use of peripheral quantitative ultrasound in bone assessment.

Women treated with OCs for menstrual disorders like dysmenorrhea and irregular bleeding may not want to put up with the withdrawal symptoms linked with the standard regimen's 7-day hormone-free interval. Extending active therapy and reducing hormone-free days can improve their quality of life.

Mounting evidence suggests that a chronic oral infection may lead to an immune reaction that either triggers premature parturition or contributes to its onset.

A many as 20% of specimens from liquid-based cytology may lack a TZ component. The author examines the evidence on whether that should be of concern to clinicians and reveals two easy steps that can help you obtain more TZ in Pap specimens.

Therapeutic amenorrhea is not always easy to initiate or to maintain. But anticipating prolonged, heavy bleeding in patients with certain medical problems--and managing it prophylactically--is far better than trying to stop potentially life-threatening bleeding once it's begun.