Pregnancy hypothyroidism incidence and complications using the 2011 and 2017 ATA cutoff values. Experience at a maternity hospital in a densely populated area in Mexico City.

OBJECTIVES: Normal thyroid activity has an essential role in fetal development, its deficiency may hamper fetal neurodevelopment and neonatal growth. The quantitation of thyroid hormones although useful, still exposes differences on cut off levels to diagnose thyroid deficit accurately that can elicit under or over diagnosis of thyroid dysfuntion. METHODS: A total of 839 pregnant patients were studied for thyroidal clinical assessment through quantitation of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4) circulating levels. Patients evaluated for prenatal and neonatal outcomes. Thyroid function deficiencies were determined with the American Thyroid Association (ATA) 2011 and 2017 values. Statistical analysis searched for associations between variables, odds ratios (OR) and correlations were calculated to evaluate the reliability of the cutoff values recommended by the ATA. RESULTS: Mean age of our cases was 27.5 + 5.83 years at diagnosis, mean gestational age at first consultation was 23.8 + 10.5 weeks. Mean TSH levels detected were: 2.5 + 1.89 mIU/L, total T3: 3.55 + 4.1 ng/dL, FT4: 3.14 + 4.4 ng/dL. The ATA 2011 values yielded 332 hypothyroidism cases vs. 507 euthyroid patients, a total incidence of 39.6% vs. the ATA 2017 values, diagnosing 100 hypothyroidism cases and 739 euthyroid patients, total incidence of 11.9%. Association with complications were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Using ATA 2017 values showed a decreased population with gestational hypothyroidism, hence preventing overdiagnosis and over-treatment. No significant complications were associated, requiring the determination of new regional values. Education and sensibilization of our population is needed to comply with early prenatal consultation and thyroid function testing.

Reconstrucción cervical con conexión vaginal secundaria a agenesia cervical. Reporte de caso / Cervical reconstruction with vaginal conexion secundary to cervical agenesia. Case report

Resumen ANTECEDENTES: La agenesia cervical congénita es una anomalía poco común del sistema de Müller, que generalmente se reconoce durante la menarquia. Hasta hace poco, el tratamiento de primera elección era la histerectomía, debido a que no se consideraba una enfermedad compatible con la fertilidad. Hoy en día, gracias a las técnicas de reproducción asistida, se han desarrollado procedimientos quirúrgicos menos agresivos que sí preservan la fertilidad de las pacientes. OBJETIVO: Revisar un caso de agenesia cervical a partir de su tratamiento quirúrgico y seguimiento de la reconstrucción cervical con la conexión entre la vagina y el útero, revisar la bibliografía y cómo establecer el pronóstico a largo plazo. CASO CLÍNICO: Paciente de 12 años llevada a consulta ante la ausencia de menstruación. El procedimiento diagnóstico transcurrió sin que se encontraran alteraciones; sin embargo, en la laparoscopia diagnóstica operatoria efectuada a los 14 años, indicada por dolor pélvico cíclico, se advirtieron la ausencia del cuello del útero, un hematometra y endometriosis grado IV. En el segundo tiempo quirúrgico, practicado en conjunto con el cirujano pediatra, se practicó, por laparotomía, la comunicación entre el útero y la vagina. En la actualidad, la paciente tiene 19 años y sus menstruaciones son cíclicas, no dolorosas. En el último ultrasonido se visualizó la conexión entre el útero y la vagina. CONCLUSIONES: Hoy en día, la anastomosis útero vaginal es un procedimiento capaz de mantener la función del útero y permitir el embarazo, con los cuidados adecuados.

Abstract BACKGROUND: Congenital cervical agenesis is a rare anomaly of the Müllerian system, usually recognized during menarche. Until recently, the treatment of first choice was hysterectomy, because it was not considered a disease compatible with fertility. Today, thanks to assisted reproductive techniques, less aggressive surgical procedures have been developed that do preserve the fertility of patients. OBJECTIVE: To review a case of cervical agenesis from its surgical treatment and follow-up cervical reconstruction with the connection between the vagina and the uterus, review the literature and how to establish the long-term prognosis. CLINICAL CASE: A 12 years old female patient was brought for consultation due to absence of menstruation. The diagnostic procedure was carried out without finding any alterations; however, in the operative diagnostic laparoscopy performed at the age of 14, indicated by cyclic pelvic pain, the absence of the cervix, a hematometra and endometriosis grade IV were noticed. In the second surgery, performed in conjunction with the pediatric surgeon, the communication between the uterus and the vagina was performed by laparotomy. At present, the patient is 19 years old and her menses are cyclical, not painful. In the last ultrasound the connection between the uterus and the vagina was visualized. CONCLUSIONS: Today, utero-vaginal anastomosis is a procedure capable of maintaining the function of the uterus and allowing pregnancy, with proper care.

HIV Provider Experiences Engaging and Retaining Patients in HIV Care and Treatment: "A Soft Place to Fall".

Engaging and retaining persons with HIV in care and treatment is key to reducing new HIV infections in the United States. Understanding the experiences, barriers, and facilitators to engaging and retaining persons in HIV care from the perspective of HIV care providers could help provide insight into how best to achieve this goal. We present qualitative data from 30 HIV care providers in three cities. We identified three facilitators to HIV care: providing a medical home, team-based care and strategies for engaging and retaining patients in HIV care, and focus on provider-patient relationships. We identified two main barriers to care: facility-level policies and patient-level challenges. Our findings suggest that providers embrace the medical home model for engaging patients but need support to identify aspects of the model that promote engagement in long-term HIV care, improve the quality of the provider-patient relationship, and address persistent logistical barriers, such as transportation.