Neurosurgery on a Pregnant Woman with Post Mortem Fetal Extrusion: An Unusual Case from Medieval Italy.

Trepanation is one of the most ancient and applied surgical treatments; several archaeologically documented cases are known, dated back from prehistory to the Middle Ages. This case study reports the anthropologic analysis of the skeletal remains of a young medieval woman and a fetus (Imola, Italy). The fetal remains were laid between her pelvis and lower limbs. A perforating injury was observed to her frontal bone. After assessing biologic profiles, we attempted to interpret the injury and to reconstruct possible circumstances of death. The lesion seems commensurate with a surgical intervention; signs of an osteogenic reaction were detected at its edges. It can be hypothesized that the survival of the woman undergoing the surgery was approximately 1 week and the fetus extruded after the burial. Thus, this case represents a unicum, spreading more light on the history of neurosurgery during the Early Middle Ages in Europe.

Understanding the experience of women admitted to a psychiatric hospital in Sydney with psychosis or mania following childbirth after World War II (1945-1955).

In the present study, we investigated a unique set of historical health-care records of women admitted to a psychiatric hospital in Sydney, Australia with a diagnosis of psychosis or mania after childbirth in the post-World War II (WWII) period, from 1945 to 1955. This research is part of a larger project examining how the descriptions of these women documented in the health-care records from 1885 to 1975 affected their treatment and the outcome of their admission. In the present paper, we report on the findings from an intensive examination of the post WWII documents. Eighteen health-care records from a psychiatric facility (Gladesville Hospital) were identified from admission registers housed in the State Records Office of New South Wales in 2014. Although seven records had been destroyed, 11 were transcribed verbatim. The records contain demographic information; descriptions of the women's signs and symptoms on admission; and information about the women before, during, and after their admission found in letters from relatives or medical staff. A content analysis of admission information showed how the women were described by health-care professionals, but a textual analysis of the records revealed that there were other factors that could have contributed to the women's condition, which might not have been taken into consideration when treatment and care were devised. The present study demonstrates the value of investigating historical health-care records to understand how prevailing attitudes and practices might affect diagnosis and treatment.

Opioid dependence and pregnancy in early twentieth-century America.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Research on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome has prompted discussion over how to ensure best outcomes for pregnant women who use drugs and for drug-dependent newborns. Before Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome and the 1980s panic of "crack babies," turn-of-the-century American medical journals discussed infants born to drug-using mothers. This paper aimed to determine whether women who used drugs while pregnant in early twentieth-century America were subject to the stigma many face today. METHODS: Records from early twentieth century medical journals, narcotic maintenance clinics, prisons that held drug users, and conferences on narcotics were examined. Dr. Charles Terry's outspokenness on drug addiction and pregnancy merited closer examination of his work, particularly The Opium Problem. RESULTS: Some physicians saw drug-dependent newborns as scientific proof that addiction was a physiological disease and not subject to questions of morality. This theory was discarded in the 1920s. In that decade, beliefs that children born to drug-using parents threatened national well-being proliferated. Following formal medicine's retreat from addiction treatment, research on drug addiction and pregnancy fell into obscurity until decades later. CONCLUSIONS: The precedent that women who use drugs while pregnant deserve humane treatment extends to the early twentieth century in the US. From 1910 to 1930, perceptions of infants of drug-using women changed from hopeful to fearful.

Historical evolution of ideas on eclampsia/preeclampsia: A proposed optimistic view of preeclampsia.

Eclampsia (together with epilepsy) being the first disease ever written down since the beginning of writings in mankind 5000 years ago, we will make a brief presentation of the different major steps in comprehension of Pre-eclampsia. 1) 1840. Rayer, description of proteinuria in eclampsia, 2) 1897 Vaquez, discovery of gestational hypertension in eclamptic women, 3) In the 1970's, description of the "double" trophoblastic invasion existing only in humans (Brosens & Pijnenborg,), 4) between the 1970's and the 1990's, description of preeclampsia being a couple disease. The "paternity problem" (and therefore irruption of immunology), 5) at the end of the 1980's, a major step forward: Preeclampsia being a global endothelial cell disease (glomeruloendotheliosis, hepatic or cerebral endotheliosis, HELLP, eclampsia), inflammation (J.Roberts.C Redman, R Taylor), 6) End of the 1990's: Consensus for a distinction between early onset preeclampsia EOP and late onset LOP (34 weeks gestation), EOP being rather a problem of implantation of the trophoblast (and the placenta), LOP being rather a pre-existing maternal problem (obesity, diabetes, coagulopathies etc…). LOP is predominant everywhere on this planet, but enormously predominant in developed countries: 90% of cases. This feature is very different in countries where women have their first child very young (88% of world births), where the fatal EOP (early onset) occurs in more than 30% of cases. 7) What could be the common factor which could explain the maternal global endotheliosis in EOP and LOP? Discussion about the inositol phospho glycans P type.

Gestational Weight Gain: Historical Evolution of a Contested Health Outcome.

The history of research on gestational weight gain (GWG) in the United States and United Kingdom provides a context for current clinical practice. We trace the evolution of research on GWG in scientific literature from the 19th century to the present and examine its implications for contemporary clinical and public health practice. Obstetricians, beginning in the late 1800s, recommended dieting during pregnancy in order to limit GWG to 20 lb or less, driven by a belief that excessive weight gain was a cause of toxemia. Beginning in the 1930s, a burgeoning focus on nutrition and health allowed a better understanding of the effect of GWG on the health of the fetus and the newborn. Increased awareness of disparities in infant mortality in the 1960s, followed by systematic review of the literature, produced further refinements in GWG recommendations in the 1970s, which continue today. Current research focuses on epigenetic influences over the life course and has emphasized individualized recommendations. The complex historical perspective that this article provides serves as a reminder of both the interplay and the gaps between research and practice. These gaps result from the fact that clinical guidelines often reflect a specific point in a perpetually evolving state of knowledge that is influenced not only by advances in bench research, but also by refinements in statistical and epidemiologic methods, as well as by the political realities of the time in which they are drafted. IMPORTANCE: Gestational weight gain and its relationship to maternal, fetal, and infant health are areas of active inquiry. OBJECTIVE: We critically review evolution of scientific understanding of GWG from the 19th century to the present, and examine its implications for contemporary obstetric practice. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: We reviewed all English-language medical studies related to GWG published through 1930s as well as widely cited influential works from 1940s through present time. RESULTS: During the past century, recommendations for GWG have reversed from emphasizing dieting during pregnancy to the importance of proper nutrition during pregnancy. Obstetricians' focus has also evolved from being exclusively on the newborn to include the health of mothers. Contemporary obstetric practice seeks to achieve a balance between mothers' and infants' risk of adverse outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Historical and social contexts of the United States and the United Kingdom led to distinct GWG policies in the 2 countries. Changes in GWG recommendations over the past century reflect developments in the allied fields, such as epidemiology and nutrition, as much as progress in obstetrics and gynecology. RELEVANCE: The complex historical perspective that this article provides serves as a reminder of both the interplay and the gaps between research and practice. These gaps result from the fact that clinical guidelines often reflect a specific point in a perpetually evolving state of knowledge that is influenced not only by advances in bench research, but also by refinements in statistical and epidemiologic methods, as well as by the political realities of the time in which they are drafted.

Frontier nurse-midwives and antepartum emergencies, 1925 to 1939.

This article examines how the Frontier Nursing Service (FNS) utilized nurse-midwives to respond to antepartum emergencies such as preterm birth, eclampsia, malpresentation, and hemorrhage in the women of Appalachia in the years 1925 to 1939. Particular attention is given to the preparation that nurse-midwives received during their midwifery education to prevent and respond to emergencies. Using traditional historical research methods and primary source material from the FNS papers in the Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington, Kentucky, this article describes the nurse-midwives' experiences and how they implemented skills they had learned during their training in Great Britain. Working in the isolated mountainous area of Leslie County, Kentucky-for the most part without direct assistance from physicians-FNS nurse-midwives decreased maternal and neonatal mortality rates. During their first 2000 births, they had only 2 maternal deaths, whereas the national average maternal mortality rate was approximately 7 deaths per 1000 births. The nurse-midwives performed external cephalic versions on a routine basis. For pregnancy and birth emergencies, they administered sedation, gave general anesthesia, and performed invasive lifesaving techniques in order to protect the lives of the women in their care. During these 14 years, their cross-cultural engagement, assessment skills, clinical judgment, and timely interventions improved maternal and child health throughout the region.

Exercising caution: the production of medical knowledge about physical exertion during pregnancy.

In this article I explore the production of medical knowledge about exercise during pregnancy in the latter half of the 20th century, illustrating how debates about the safe limits of maternal exercise were rooted in longstanding anxieties surrounding the female reproductive body as well as epistemological questions concerning what counts as knowledge or evidence in the scientific realm. By drawing to the surface the "rules of formation" for the production of knowledge about the pregnant body, I aim to bring to light the contingent nature of this knowledge--never neutral but always bound up in relations of power.

Hungry in the womb: what are the consequences? Lessons from the Dutch famine.

An increasing body of evidence suggests that poor nutrition at the very beginning of life - even before birth - leads to large and long term negative consequences for both mental and physical health. This paper reviews the evidence from studies on the Dutch famine, which investigated the effects of prenatal undernutrition on later health. The effects of famine appeared to depend on its timing during gestation, and the organs and tissues undergoing critical periods of development at that time. Early gestation appeared to be the most vulnerable period. People who were conceived during the famine were at increased risk of schizophrenia and depression, they had a more atherogenic plasma lipid profile, were more responsive to stress and had a doubled rate of coronary heart disease. Also, they performed worse on cognitive tasks which may be a sign of accelerated ageing. People exposed during any period of gestation had more type 2 diabetes. Future investigation will expand on the finding that the effects of prenatal famine exposure may reach down across generations, possibly through epigenetic mechanisms. Recent evidence suggests that similar effects of prenatal undernutrition are found in Africa, where many are undernourished. Hunger is a major problem worldwide with one in seven inhabitants of this planet suffering from lack of food. Adequately feeding women before and during pregnancy may be a promising strategy in preventing chronic diseases worldwide.

'Forbidden points' in pregnancy: no plausible mechanism for risk.

It has been suggested that acupuncture may pose particular risks during pregnancy: by enhancing oxygenation to the developing embryo (presumably via increasing blood flow to the uterus); by affecting the level of maternal progesterone in early pregnancy; or by stimulating uterine contractions. This article examines the proposed risks and fails to find any plausible physiological mechanism for them.