Antenatal characteristics of Roma female population in Virovitica-Podravina County, Croatia.

INTRODUCTION: This study reports about antenatal characteristics of Roma minority population. The study was designed to investigate data about health behaviours known to be associated with reproductive outcomes of Roma women that have very good living conditions and relatively high resource availability. METHODS: A retrospective study included 204 Roma and 408 non-Roma hospitalised singleton births that occurred in the Maternity Ward of the General Hospital Virovitica in the period from 1991 to 2010. Data about women's age, marital status, smoking, reproductive health (abortions, delivery), antenatal care, perinatal complications and gestational age were taken from hospital records and analysed. RESULTS: Roma women were averagely more than three years younger than non-Roma women, only 10.8% were married. Smoking was more frequent. The average number of births of Roma and non-Roma women was similar, averagely two children per woman. The rate of induced abortions in the Roma women was higher, while the frequency of spontaneous abortions was equal. Inadequate antenatal care of Roma women was associated with two times higher incidence of perinatal complications. A higher frequency of deliveries at home without professional assistance in Roma pregnancy resulted in lower perinatal outcomes. It was confirmed that Roma mothers give birth earlier (38+6 vs. 39+4 weeks) and have a higher incidence of premature births (9.3% vs. 2.2%). CONCLUSIONS: In the comparison of antenatal parameters between the two researched groups, poorer prenatal outcomes in the Roma population were found, despite full integration and considerable improvement in living standards of this ethnic Roma population.

Asymmetric neonatal crying: microdeletion, infection or birth injury?--a case report.

Asymmetric neonatal crying is a rare minor congenital abnormality caused by unilateral agenesis or hypoplasia of depressor anguli oris muscle and depressor labii inferioris muscle. It is either an isolated clinical finding or one of the clinical findings included in several malformation syndromes linked to a microdeletion within a chromosomal region 22q11.2. Some malformations in that region are associated with serious cardiovascular anomalies. Nowadays, standard diagnostic techniques for detecting aberrations within the chromosomal region 22q11.2 are fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and multiplex ligation probe amplification (MLPA). This short report describes an eutrophic female newborn whose both lip corners are symmetrically positioned while at rest; while crying, left lip corner and left half of the lower lip are falling. She also has partial bilateral syndactyly between second and third toe, open foramen ovale and by ultrasound detected hyperechogenic region in the thalamus and brain parenchyme. Aiming to investigate etiopathogenesis of the newborn asymmetric crying and accompanying minor abnormalities, we have tried to verify or exclude: microdeletion syndrome, TORCH infection and birth injury. Recognising such a paresis soon after the delivery is of great importance and can be helpful in detecting other accompanying anomalies, especially cardiovascular anomalies.

Fetal macrosomia in pregnant women with gestational diabetes.

The aim of the study was to determine the frequency of fetal macrosomia in newborns from mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and healthy mothers, as well as determining the influence of fetal growth on pregnancy termination, on complications in pregnancy, during delivery and puerperium and on neonatal complications. In the study were included 351 pregnant women with GDM, as well as control group of 1502 healthy pregnant women. Newborns of mothers with GDM had significantly higher birth weight and length, ponderal index > 2.85 was more frequent, they were macrosomic and hypertrophic (disproportional and proportional), had smaller Apgar score and more frequent neonatal complications (p < 0.05). Fetal macrosomia and fetal hypertrophy alone or, particularly, connected with disproportional fetal growth, but disproportional hypotrophy as well, had significantly influence on greater frequency of delivery and puerperal complications, delivery completion with Cesarean section and neonatal complications in pregnant women with GDM.

[Early detection of hearing impairment in newborns using automatic otoacoustic emission in Virovitica County Hospital Maternity Ward]. / Rano otkrivanje ostecenja sluha u novorodencadi metodom automatskog ispitivanja otoakusticke emisije u rodilistu Opce bolnice Virovitica.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of hearing impairment in newborns and its successful early detection using automatic otoacoustic emission (A-OAE). METHODS: All newborns from Virovitica County Hospital Maternity Ward in the period 2004-2006 were included in the screening for hearing impairment. Their hearing was investigated using A-OAE. Hearing impairment diagnosis was confirmed with tertiary audiologic analysis. RESULTS: Hearing was tested in 2422 (98.9%) newborns among whom 199 (8.2%) had positive hearing impairment results. Medical examination showed 43 (1.8%) newborns had positive results and were referred to a secondary institution (Policlinic SUVAG, Zagreb) where in 11 (0.45%) of them was confirmed hearing impairment. A significantly higher percentage of hearing impairment was among newborns with risk factors. CONCLUSION: The results confirm the importance of early screening for hearing impairment of all newborns in the maternity ward using A-OAE, because this will enable the early treatment and successful rehabilitation.