Acupuncture Labor Induction for Healthy Mom and Baby

Posted by :admin On : June 30, 2010
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Category: Women's Health

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blessed-pregancy-tao

Acupuncture helps a natural labor induction before you go to any medical induction of labor to initiate labor artificially, which usually involves the use of prostaglandins and possibly oxytocin or even further a caesarean delivery.

If you are nearing the due, but you have no contraction whatsoever, even you passed the due, still no signs of baby coming out, you really have to think about ‘Acupuncture Induction: this is very natural, non-invasive, just stimulating some of traditional acupuncture points related to the uterus and also the meridians running near or around the uterus and pelvic region and at times I have the pregnant women for acupuncture induction referred by western doctors.

We are very confident to offer the natural acupuncture induction, which can also help your labor and delivery easy and smooth, good for the mom and baby as well.

And also below is the article titled, “Babies’ First Germs Depend On Type Of Birth” by Chao Deng NPR Health Blog, telling us the natural cervical delivery is the better for the healthy baby.

Babies start their lives with a clean slate. But it doesn’t last long.
Newborns delivered vaginally get a healthy dose of the Lactobacillus bacteria.
All sorts of bacteria move right in at birth. And how a baby is delivered — vaginally or by Cesarean section — can make all the difference in what kinds of bugs start calling the newborn home.
Researchers who tested 10 babies found those born vaginally tended to get colonized by bacteria such as Lactobacillus from the mother’s vaginal canal. C-section babies, however, got more Staphylococcus, a type of microbe usually found on the skin and one that sometimes causes nasty infections.

The results were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Microbiologist Maria Dominquez-Bello tells Shots the bacteria on C-section babies may come from the first person to handle the baby.
Without the exposure to vaginal bacteria from a natural birth, C-section babies may be more at risk of getting infections and even asthma. As the researchers note, the majority of antibiotic-resistant skin infections occur in infants born by C-section.

Dominquez-Bello says that doctors might be able to reduce those bacterial risks by wrapping C-section babies in gauze that’s been exposed to the mother’s vaginal bacteria. It may be worth a look considering that C-section births are at a record high

Reference: Delivery mode shapes the acquisition and structure of the initial microbiota across multiple body habitats in newborns -the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Caffeine Consumption and Miscarriage Rate

Posted by :admin On : June 21, 2010
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Category: Women's Health

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This is the article written by AUDREY GRAYSON on JAN 21, 2008 at ABC News

Expectant mothers have been confused for years about whether drinking that morning cup of joe could do harm to their unborn child.

Some previous studies have shown that consuming caffeine during pregnancy increases a woman’s risk for miscarriage, while others have found that drinking just a couple cups of coffee a day doesn’t pose much of a threat.

The latest research to examine the risk of caffeine consumption during pregnancy reveals that women who said they drank more than two cups of coffee per day had nearly double the risk of miscarriage compared with women who consumed no caffeine.

Researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Research Division in Oakland, Calif., followed 1,063 women during their pregnancy and asked about their caffeine intake. From October 1996 to October 1998, researchers examined the effects of the stimulant among the women who said they never decreased their caffeine consumption during their pregnancy.

They found that women who consumed 200 milligrams or more of caffeine daily — the equivalent of two or more cups of coffee or five 12-ounce cans of soda — had twice the risk for miscarriage. Moreover, the study found that even those women who consumed less than 200 milligrams of caffeine daily had about 40 percent increased risk for miscarriage.

Coffee: ‘Toxic Stuff’

“I am not at all surprised by this study,” said Dr. Sherman Silber, director of the Infertility Center at St. Lukes Hospital in St. Louis. “Coffee is toxic stuff.”

But does this study carry enough weight to finally answer the question of whether pregnant women should give up caffeine altogether?

Dr. De-Kun Li, primary study investigator, said that he hopes the research will convince doctors to tell their pregnant patients to avoid coffee completely.

“This is something you can control if you’re worried about a miscarriage,” Li said. “There’s lots of things we can’t control, but this is one thing that you can.”

you may want to see how other people think about this article at “abc news” and check the comments.

Endometriosis and Infertility

Posted by :admin On : November 24, 2009
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Category: Uncategorized, Women's Health

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Endometriosis

Endometriosis is a gynecologic condition in which tissues similar to the lining of the uterus (called “endometrial stroma and glands”–normally located only inside the uterus) are found elsewhere in the body.Endometriosis lesions can be found anywhere in the pelvic cavity: on the ovaries, the fallopian tubes, the pelvic sidewall and the uterosacral ligaments.

These lesions, termed “endometriosis implants”, respond to female hormones like estrogen and progesterone, just like the endometrial lining does.  They can even bleed in microscopic amounts just like a menstrual period.  This bleeding leads to local irritation and inflammation in the sites of implantation.  The inflammation causes scarring to occur which can bind-up pelvic organs to the point of dysfunction and pain.  A few examples of this are:

1.The fallopian tubes can become scarred to the point of blockage and prevent sperm and egg interaction. In extreme cases, reproductive organs are fused together and do not function properly.

2.The ovaries can become filled up with endometriosis cysts(called an endometrioma)  These are called “chocolate cysts” because the congealed blood looks like chocolate syrup.  These can have deleterious effects on egg production and ovulation.

3.Any organ that has endometriosis and scarring on it can experience pain from inflammation and adhesions to other organs. 

Women with endometriosis typically present with pelvic pain, infertility or a pelvic mass (usually an endometrioma, “chocolate cyst”).  The most common symptom of endometriosis is pelvic pain. The pain often correlates to the bleeding days of a menstrual period, but a woman with endometriosis may also experience pelvic pain at any time. All of these symptoms point towards endometriosis, but the only true way to diagnose the condition is through a surgical exploration of the abdominal cavity, called laparoscopic (or “minimally invasive”) surgery.

In terms of fertility, there is a strong association between endometriosis and infertility, but a true “cause-and-effect” relationship has not been firmly established.

It is estimated that in untreated women with endometriosis who are trying to conceive, the monthly fecundity (chance of pregnancy each month) is 2-10%, compared to 15-20% in the general population.

Some studies have suggested that 30%-50% of women with endometriosis have difficulty conceiving.

In terms of treatment, it is important to clarify your goals.  Some patients do not wish to conceive and just want amelioration of their pain.  If this is the case, there are medical treatments(such as anti-inflammatory medications) and hormonal manipulations (such as birth control pills and injections called leuprolide acetate, Lupron®),that can control the painful effects of endometriosis, but they will not help in conception.  Surgical destruction and removal of endometriosis has also been shown to decrease pain for longer periods of time, but repeat surgery may be required in the future.

For patients wishing to conceive, the best scientific evidence points to the need for an aggressive treatment plan. Often patients with endometriosis need advanced treatments such as injectable medications (gonadotropins) and frequently IVF.  It is the experience of many fertility specialists (called Reproductive Endocrinology; Infertility specialists) that endometriosis results in a much greater infertility problem than the severity the endometriosis suggest. These patients have the tendency to perform very well during the process of IVF and do as well as patients that do not have endometriosis when undergoing IVF. 

If you have been previously diagnosed with endometriosis, or suspect that you have it (based on painful periods, pelvic pain or pain with sexual intercourse), you should see a specialist in a timely fashion.  The initial consultation will review endometriosis in depth with you, as well as look for clinical clues as to your diagnosis.  After your complete evaluation, our physicians will individualize a treatment plan for you.  It may include laparoscopic surgical evaluation of your reproductive organs, or proceeding directly with fertility treatments.

Surgical therapies should be reserved for the younger patient population secondary to the fact that it may take a much longer duration of treatment.  Older patients may do much better by proceeding directly to IVF.

The diagnosis and care of patients with endometriosis is often a complex situation that requires specialized training, patience, and skill. Improving your quality of life, while helping you conceive and build your family,is our top concern.

Written and provided by Shahin Ghadir, MD, Southern California Reproductive Center