Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Women Are Being Cut During Childbirth Without Need Or Consent, Molly Cora Enking

Capstones

An episiotomy, a surgical cut used to enlarge the vaginal opening during childbirth, can be extremely painful, hard to recover from and can increase the risk of severe complications. In 2018, episiotomies are rarely necessary, but at some U.S. hospitals they happen much more than they should. And in the course reporting this story, New York City News Service found that it is common for doctors to cut women without the mother’s consent.

https://medium.com/@mollyenking/women-are-being-cut-during-childbirth-without-need-or-consent-7677de7eddae

Association Of Adverse Birth Outcomes With Maternal Exposure To Nitrate In Private Well Drinking Water: An Action Plan For Prevention, Jessyka R. Johnson

Capstone Experience

Abstract

Goal: The goal of the capstone project is to collect information required to develop an action plan focusing on minimizing exposure to nitrate in pregnant women, which, if implemented, can either prevent or reduce adverse health outcomes associated with nitrate exposure in utero.

Objective: The capstone project objective is to gain a better understanding of what programs to prevent exposure to nitrate from private well drinking water in pregnant women are already in place throughout the United States; to identify any areas of improvement in these programs; and to utilize this information to create a unique action plan in …

Physical Activity During Pregnancy And Birth Outcomes In South Carolina 2009-2015, Andrew Tyler Broadway

Theses and Dissertations

Physical activity is known to be beneficial to adults in general, including pregnant women, but the literature on physical activity and neonatal outcomes has been inconsistent. Few studies have differentiated between physical activity prior to pregnancy and during pregnancy to see whether the typical beneficial effect is not due to having a more active lifestyle in general. The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) is a national cross-sectional surveillance system. Our data from SC PRAMS included 6391 respondents and was weighted to be representative of population of pregnant women that delivered in the state. We excluded births that were not …

Linking Hostile/Helpless Maternal Representations In Pregnancy And Later Child Protection Involvement: A Pilot Study, Madeleine Terry

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The present pilot study examined whether there are reliable indices in the narratives of pregnant women that can be used to identify child abuse and neglect potential before the birth of the child. The Hostile/Helpless (HH) Classification system (Lyons-Ruth et al., 1995-2005), which detects mental states associated with trauma, disturbances in early attachment, and severe pathology, was adapted for use with the Pregnancy Interview (PI), a semi-structured clinical interview (Slade, 2003) that assesses a woman's emotional experience of pregnancy, and quality of her developing relationship with her baby. The study sample was drawn from a replication study of the Minding …

Foki Vitamin D Receptor Gene Polymorphisms And Metabolic Health In Pregnant Saudi Women, Maysa Alzaim

Doctoral Dissertations

Lifestyles have been dynamically changing in the past few years in Saudi Arabia, and the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and other cardiovascular diseases (CVD), is notably increasing. In fact, NCDs are affecting a growing number of people in SA, especially women of childbearing age. Vitamin D deficiency has also become pandemic and a major public health concern among the Saudi population despite the abundance of sunlight. The most vulnerable groups are pregnant women and their newborns. Previous studies have correlated low vitamin D status with a higher risk of adverse short- and …

Regular Exercise Throughout Pregnancy And Maternal Recovery Postpartum, Rachel Jenkins

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

Abstract

Introduction: The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends that “women with uncomplicated pregnancies should be encouraged to engage in aerobic and strength-conditioning exercises before, during, and after pregnancy.”1 Many pregnant mothers seek guidance regarding exercise regimens’ safety and efficacy. This paper is a systematic review of the current literature on the topic of exercise regimens performed throughout pregnancy and maternal postpartum recovery.

Purpose: To determine if following the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommendation to engage in regular aerobic and strength-conditioning exercises throughout pregnancy contributes to easier deliveries as measured by the number of caesarean sections, time …

Wayne County Board Of Education Adaptation Of Love Notes Curriculum For Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention, Allison Shea Merritt

Theses and Dissertations--Public Health (M.P.H. & Dr.P.H.)

West Virginia has the 8^th highest rate of adolescent pregnancy in the United States and the rate in Wayne County is significantly higher. Adolescent pregnancies cause negative health outcomes for both the baby and the mother. Adolescent mothers are at an increased risk of anemia, preeclampsia, and preterm labor and babies born to adolescent mothers are more likely to have a low birth weight and to have cognitive impairment. To address this burden, the school board has decided to use the ADAPT-ITT framework on the evidence-based Love Notes adolescent pregnancy prevention curriculum to adapt it to be more culturally …

The Effect Of Breastfeeding And Rooming-In Care On Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, Rachel Boyer, Lindsay Gal, Mahaylie Cline

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Concurrent with a rise in opioid abuse during pregnancy is an increase in the number of babies born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS). Despite this crisis, no single treatment has been identified for NAS. This paper sought to analyze and synthesize research evaluating the effectiveness of breastfeeding and rooming-in care on the need and length of pharmacologic treatment and length of hospital stay for neonates with NAS. Twenty-six peer reviewed research articles published between 2006 and 2017 were selected from PubMed and CINAHL for analysis. The studies focused on neonates with NAS born to mothers addicted to opioids or undergoing …

Physical And Psychological Health Outcomes Of Pregnancy-Related Intimate Partner Violence, Darrlyn Waynette Cornelius-Averhart

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health issue that transcends cultures and nationalities. Women and men have been impacted by sexual violence through rape and other types of IPV. Each year, women experience IPV before and during pregnancies and are impacted by physical and psychological outcomes as a result. The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of IPV on the health outcomes of diabetes (Types 1, 2, and gestational), high blood pressure before pregnancy, and depression/anxiety among adult women before and during pregnancy. The social ecological model provided the framework for this quantitative cross-sectional study that …

The Impact Of Sexual Education On Decreasing Adolescent Pregnancy In Nicaragua, Allison Greenwood

Theses and Graduate Projects

Half of the females of Nicaragua will have given birth by their 20th birthday.1 Nicaragua has one of the highest fertility rates in the world and exceeds the fertility rate average in Latin America with 109 (births per 1000 females aged 15-19) compared to the average of 79 births.1,2 Young maternal age is linked to higher incidences of pregnancy complications such as preterm birth, low birth weight, and neonatal mortality.2 Nicaragua’s high adolescent pregnancy rate is a result of a multifactorial social and political climate. The initiation of a teen's sexual debut is complex and hinges on multiple factors from …

A Stakeholder Examination Of Gestational Weight Gain Guidelines, Melissa Kwitowski

Theses and Dissertations

Obesity is a significant health concern for women of childbearing age. More than 40% of women have a Body Mass Index (BMI) in the overweight or obese ranges at the time they conceive, posing significant health risks for both mother and child. Excessive weight gain during pregnancy is common and associated with numerous deleterious complications. The Institute of Medicine published gestational weight gain (GWG) guidelines based on prepregnancy BMI. However, more than 50% of women gain in excess of these recommendations. Further, many women report receiving minimal guidance from their healthcare providers regarding weight gain, nutrition, and physical activity during …