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Special Issue "Pregnancy and Health in the Newborn"

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Global Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2018) | Viewed by 10412

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Prof. Dr. María M. Morales Suárez-Varela

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Guest Editor

1. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Food Science, Toxicology and Forensic Medicine, Universitat de Valencia, 46100 Burjassot, Spain
2. Center for Biomedical Research Network Epidemiology and Public Health, (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Interests: epidemiology; public health; preventive medicine; cancer; nutrition; maternal and fetal health
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Agustín Llopis-González

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Dear Colleagues,

Early identification of newborns at risk for possible future major health complications is the first step to effective health promotion and intervention. To make this identification possible and most effective, risk factors the mother may be exposed to during pregnancy must be identified and proper intervention applied when necessary during this especially sensitive time period of development. Intervention at the earliest possible time is crucial for long term health outcomes, however, there still exists a belief that interventions over the antenatal period have less impact than those provided around the time of birth for the long-term health of newborns. Risk factors prior to birth can be subdivided according to timing, duration, dosage of exposure, and mode of action. These variables determine which tissues are affected and to what extent in the newborn. Current risk factor screening is limited to the presence of clinical features and exposure such as alcohol and drugs. This Special Issue will focus on identifying risk factors for major health complications in newborns present during pregnancy and on appropriate management. New prevention and treatment strategies that are consequent upon the accurate identification of those newborns at risk will also be considered, as will wider societal implications.

Authors are encouraged to submit original research articles aimed to widen the current knowledge on this field. Submissions of hypotheses, opinions and commentaries are also welcome.

Prof. Dr. María M. Morales Suárez-Varela
Prof. Dr. Agustin Llopis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

pregnancy
newborn
prenatal care
prenatal exposures
lifestyle factors
diet

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 331 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Perceived Stress as a Predictor of Partnership Relation Quality in Polish Mothers of Preterm-Born Children

Mariola Bidzan

and

Karolina Lutkiewicz

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(3), 355; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030355 - 27 Jan 2019

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2824

Abstract

The aim of the study was to identify whether perceived stress and significant life changes are related with partnership relation quality in mothers of preterm-born children. The study group consisted of 260 women, who gave a preterm birth. In most cases the delivery took place in the 34–36th week of pregnancy. The research consisted of two phases. Phase 1 was carried out in the Department of Obstetrics at the Medical University of Gdansk in the neonatal period (2–3 days after birth). Phase 2 was carried out in the place of residence of the mother and child during early childhood (24–30th month of the child’s life). The following research tools were used in the first phase of the research project: Analysis of nursing and medical reports, an interview questionnaire and psychological interview, The Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ) (Lavenstein, the Polish version, after Plopa, 2008), The Recent Life Changes Questionnaire (RLCQ) (Rahe and Holmes, 1975), the Polish version, after Terelak 1995), and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) (Spanier, 1976, the Polish version, after Cieślak, 1989). In the second phase of the study the respondents were once again examined using the DAS. It was shown that stress is related to partnership relationship quality and of all its components, except cohesion. The findings demonstrated that important life events are associated with a couple’s emotional expression in the neonatal period. Stressful life events do not correlate with relationship quality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pregnancy and Health in the Newborn)

12 pages, 569 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Acquiring Knowledge about the Use of a Newly Developed Electronic Fetal Heart Rate Monitor: A Qualitative Study Among Birth Attendants in Tanzania

Sara Rivenes Lafontan

and

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(12), 2863; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122863 - 14 Dec 2018

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2975

Abstract

In an effort to reduce newborn mortality, a newly developed strap-on electronic fetal heart rate monitor was introduced at several health facilities in Tanzania in 2015. Training sessions were organized to teach staff how to use the device in clinical settings. This study explores skilled birth attendants’ perceptions and experiences acquiring and transferring knowledge about the use of the monitor, also called Moyo. Knowledge about this learning process is crucial to further improve training programs and ensure correct, long-term use. Five Focus group discussions (FGDs) were carried out with doctors and nurse-midwives, who were using the monitor in the labor ward at two health facilities in Tanzania. The FGDs were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The study revealed that the participants experienced the training about the device as useful but inadequate. Due to high turnover, a frequently mentioned challenge was that many of the birth attendants who were responsible for training others, were no longer working in the labor ward. Many participants expressed a need for refresher trainings, more practical exercises and more theory on labor management. The study highlights the need for frequent trainings sessions over time with focus on increasing overall knowledge in labor management to ensure correct use of the monitor over time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pregnancy and Health in the Newborn)

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18 pages, 1736 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Estimation of Neonatal Intestinal Perforation Associated with Necrotizing Enterocolitis by Machine Learning Reveals New Key Factors

Claudine Irles

Gabriela González-Pérez

Sandra Carrera Muiños

Carolina Michel Macias

César Sánchez Gómez

Anahid Martínez-Zepeda

Guadalupe Cordero González

and

Estibalitz Laresgoiti Servitje

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2509; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112509 - 09 Nov 2018

Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4075

Abstract

Intestinal perforation (IP) associated with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is one of the leading causes of mortality in premature neonates; with major nutritional and neurodevelopmental sequelae. Since predicting which neonates will develop perforation is still challenging; clinicians might benefit considerably with an early diagnosis tool and the identification of critical factors. The aim of this study was to forecast IP related to NEC and to investigate the predictive quality of variables; based on a machine learning-based technique. The Back-propagation neural network was used to train and test the models with a dataset constructed from medical records of the NICU; with birth and hospitalization maternal and neonatal clinical; feeding and laboratory parameters; as input variables. The outcome of the models was diagnosis: (1) IP associated with NEC; (2) NEC or (3) control (neither IP nor NEC). Models accurately estimated IP with good performances; the regression coefficients between the experimental and predicted data were R² > 0.97. Critical variables for IP prediction were identified: neonatal platelets and neutrophils; orotracheal intubation; birth weight; sex; arterial blood gas parameters (pCO₂ and HCO₃); gestational age; use of fortifier; patent ductus arteriosus; maternal age and maternal morbidity. These models may allow quality improvement in medical practice. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pregnancy and Health in the Newborn)

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