Cell and organ culture techniques applied to the study of carcinoma of colon and rectum

The hospital records of 197 infants with the respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) were reviewed and the families of 111 of them subsequently contacted to obtain a family history. After correcting for biasis of ascertainment, the incidence of RDS among the full sibs was found to be between 12 and 19% depending on whether the individuals diagnosed as "possible RDS" were counted as affected. Among the low birth weight (LBW, less than or equal to 2.5 kg) and/or preterm (less than or equal to 37 weeks gestation) infants in the sibships, the incidence of RDS was 32-50%. Considering only sibs born after the probands yielded the empiric recurrence risk of 17--27% for all younger sibs and 39--67% for LBW/preterm younger sibs. The risk for maternal half-sibs was of about the same magnitude as that for full sibs, while the risk for paternal half-sibs was minimal. Among the LBW/preterm first cousins of probands, only the infants of maternal aunts showed an RDS incidence clearly higher than that in the general population. We think these data suggest a genetically determined maternal factor predisposing the infants of certain mothers to RDS. Other significant findings include: 1) an excess of males among the probands but a normal sex ratio among the sibs of the probands; 2) a decrease in mean birth weight and mean length of gestation for not only the probands but also their sibs; 3) a decrease in the mean parental ages at the birth of the probands; 4) a relative dearth of first-born and an excess of second-born infants among the probands; 5) an increased incidence of stillbirths in the sibships; 6) an increased number of probands born by cesarean section; and 7) a twin concordance of 75%.     

Two maternal representations: A study of Israeli adopted children.

Using an object relations perspective, the representations of birth and adopted mothers in a sample of 52 nonreferred adoptees were studied. To better understand the specific effects of adoption or, the construction of 2 maternal representations, birth and adoptive maternal representation of adopted children was compared with that of nonadopted children. In addition, the effect of incongruous representations of birth and adoptive mothers on adoptees' exteralizing and internalizing behaviors was explored. Compared with nonadopted children, adoptees' representations of the mothers appear as more concrete and less benign. Among adopted children, representations of the birth mothers were found to contain split negative aspects of the adoptive mothers. Moreover, the differences between birth and adoptive mother representations were found to associate with adoptees'externalizing behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cesarean delivery in the United States, 1990

Information now available on method of delivery from birth certificates confirms past findings on the groups at highest risk of cesarean delivery and greatly expands our knowledge of the demographic and health characteristics associated with cesarean delivery. Mothers who live in the South, who are in the oldest years of childbearing, having their first birth, married, or who have high educational attainment are all at increased risk of a cesarean delivery. Very short gestations, low or high birthweights, multiple delivery, the presence of certain complications of pregnancy, labor and/or delivery, abnormal conditions of the newborn, and the use of some obstetric procedures are also associated with elevated cesarean rates. Several recent studies (28,29) have concluded that advanced maternal age in and of itself may be an independent risk factor for cesarean delivery, due to physician and patient concern over pregnancy outcome for older women. Many of the characteristics examined in this study are highly related to maternal age (for example, marital status and educational attainment). Therefore, for these variables, mother's age is also taken into account to determine if age itself is the underlying reason for differences in rates of cesarean delivery. The importance of the role of maternal age in the risk of cesarean delivery is clearly demonstrated throughout this report: Older mothers are more likely to deliver by cesarean regardless of race, Hispanic origin, parity, marital status, or educational attainment. The overall rate of cesarean delivery is only slightly lower for black than for white mothers (22.1 percent compared with 23.0 percent), despite the generally lower educational attainment of black mothers and the higher percentage who are unmarried or in their teen years, all factors that tend to substantially lower the risk of cesarean delivery. However, there are many offsetting factors that tend to raise the cesarean rate for black mothers. A relatively high proportion of black births occur in the South, which has the highest cesarean rate of all regions; the incidence of low and very low birthweight is far higher for black births; and premature delivery is twice as frequent for black babies. Also, although rates of cesarean delivery for most medical risk factors, complications of labor and or delivery, and abnormal conditions of the infant are about the same for both races, the incidence of a number of these conditions is substantially higher for black mothers and babies, and that has the effect of increasing the overall cesarean rate for black mothers.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

The intergenerational cycle of teenage motherhood: An ecological approach.

Objective: Daughters of teenage mothers have increased risk for teenage childbearing, perpetuating intergenerational cycles. Using Ecological Systems Theory, this study prospectively examined risk factors for teenage childbearing among a national sample of adolescent girls. Design: Data came from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. Participants (N = 1,430) were recruited in early adolescence and interviewed yearly for 6 years. Survival analysis was used to examine the rate of childbirth across the teenage years by maternal age at first birth. Hierarchical Cox regression was used to identify multivariate predictors of teenage childbearing and to test whether risk factors differed between daughters of teenage versus older mothers. Primary Outcome Measure: Age at first childbirth was based on cumulative information collected at yearly interviews. Results: Daughters of teenage mothers were 66% more likely to become teenage mothers, after accounting for other risks. Individual (school performance), family (maternal education, marital status, number of children), peer (dating history), and environmental (race, enrichment) factors predicted teenage childbearing. Risks unique to daughters of teenage mothers were deviant peer norms, low parental monitoring, Hispanic race, and poverty. Conclusion: Results support multidimensional approaches to pregnancy prevention, and targeted interventions addressing unique risk factors among daughters of teenage mothers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parental work schedules and adolescent risky behaviors.

Using a large contemporary data set (the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth–Child Supplement), the authors examined the effects of parental work schedules on adolescent risky behaviors at age 13 or 14 and the mechanisms that might explain them. Structural equation modeling suggests mothers who worked more often at night spent significantly less time with children and had lower quality home environments, and these mediators were significantly linked to adolescent risky behaviors. Similar effects were not found for evening work schedules, while other types of maternal and paternal nonstandard work schedules were linked to higher parental knowledge of children's whereabouts, which led to lower levels of adolescent risky behaviors. Subgroup analyses revealed that boys, those in families with low incomes, and those whose mothers never worked at professional jobs may particularly be affected by mothers working at nights, due to spending less time together, having a lower degree of maternal closeness, and experiencing lower quality home environments. In addition, the effects of maternal night shifts were particularly pronounced if children were in the preschool or middle-childhood years when their mothers worked those schedules. Implications and avenues for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Infant attractiveness predicts maternal behaviors and attitudes.

The relations between infant attractiveness and maternal behavior were examined by observing mothers feeding and playing with their firstborn infants while they were still in the hospital after giving birth (N?=?144) and again when the infants were 3 months of age (N?=?115). The attitudes of the mothers toward their infants were also assessed. Mothers of more attractive infants were more affectionate and playful compared with mothers of less attractive infants. In contrast, the mothers of less attractive infants were more likely to be attentive to other people rather than to their infant and to engage in routine caregiving rather than affectionate behavior. The attitudes of the mothers of less attractive infants were also more negative than those of mothers of more attractive infants, but the number of differences in attitudes was not as great as the behavioral differences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Infants at social risk: Relations among infant maltreatment, maternal behavior, and infant attachment behavior.

Fifty-six 12-mo-old infants, including 10 maltreated infants, 18 nonmaltreated high-risk infants, and 28 matched low-income controls, were videotaped in naturalistic settings at home with their mothers for 40 min and were observed 2 weeks later in the Ainsworth Strange Situation. Maltreating mothers were rated higher than nonmaltreating mothers on covertly hostile and interfering behaviors toward their infants at home. Maltreated infants were more avoidant of their mothers in the Strange Situation than nonmaltreated infants. Correlations between maternal behaviors at home and infant behaviors in the Strange Situation revealed that mothers whose infants displayed resistant behavior on reunion were rated at home as less verbally communicative and mothers whose infants displayed avoidant behavior on reunion were rated at home as more covertly hostile. Infants showing mixed avoidance and resistance were more likely to have extremely uncommunicative mothers than were infants who showed avoidance alone. Use of the behavioral rating scales for avoidance and resistance produced clearer findings than use of the final attachment classifications. Reasons for the discrepancies between analyses of classifications and analyses of behavior ratings were identified. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Plasma trace element (Se, Zn, Cu) concentrations in maternal and umbilical cord blood in Poland. Relation with birth weight, gestational age, and parity

Selenium (Se), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) concentrations were determined in plasma of 64 mothers at delivery, 58 nonpregnant women, 64 neonates, and 12 infants, aged 2-12 mo. Se and Zn concentrations in mothers at delivery were significantly lower, and Cu higher than in nonpregnant women. Mean Se and Cu concentrations in newborns were statistically lower than those in mothers at delivery, and Zn and Cu concentrations in preterm infants (n = 13) were significantly higher than in fullterm infants (n = 51). Maternal parity had no significant influence on the distribution of plasma trace element levels. No significant differences were observed in Se and Zn levels in maternal and cord blood plasma according to birth weight, contrary to maternal Cu concentration. Significant correlations were found between maternal and cord blood Se content, and between maternal plasma Cu concentration and birth weight of neonates.     

Parapartum mental illness: a long-term follow-Up study

All mothers (n = 79) in the county of Stockholm who gave birth to a child during 1976-77 and were also hospitalised for the first time in a psychiatric clinic were followed up after a mean interval of 15 years. The sample was classified according to the Research Diagnostic Criteria. Comparisons were made with matched obstetric controls. Five patients had died. The recurrence rate was 51% and 7. 3% relapsed after a subsequent childbirth. No difference was found between psychotic and non-psychotic mothers regarding mean sick-leave days per year. The majority of the women with a depressive disorder at index admission suffered from a minor depressive disorder. The women in the group with an unspecified functional psychosis showed a less severe course of illness than the women in the schizophrenia group.     

Shock of birth. Evaluation of neurologic status of term newborn in the first 48 hours of life

The shock of birth is a transient depression of muscle tone and deep tendon reflexes seen in newborn babies shortly after birth. We evaluated the shock of birth in a sample of 313 consecutive term newborns at 4, 24 and 48 hours of life. We correlated neurologic findings on examination with maternal, obstetric and perinatal data. Special attention was given to the relationship between the mode of delivery and shock of birth. Of the maternal data, factors associated with the shock of birth were obstetric gestational age, previous gestations, abortion or previous vaginal deliveries. Presence of stained amniotic fluid at birth was associated with the shock of birth. There was also a correlation between shock of birth and newborn sex, birth weight, thoracic circumference and the Battaglia and Lubchenco classification. The shock of birth lasted less than 24 hours in 70% of the newborns and less than 48 hours in 84.3%. We conclude that the mode of delivery, vaginal or cesarean section, did not influence the shock of birth. We also established the duration and factors associated with this phenomenon.     

Manipulating the aggregation and oxidation of human SPARC in the cytoplasm of Escherichia coli

INTRODUCTION: The liveborn children were classified by birth weight, maternal age, maternal education level and type of delivery in the light of the importance of discovering the conditions of birth for the planning of mother-child actions. METHODOLOGY: The population studied consisted of 2,315 liveborn children from the municipality of Passos (MG), 2,311 of whom were born in hospitals and 4 at home, although these latter were immediately taken to hospital. The data refer to the set of children born alive in the municipality from April 12, 1995 to April 30, 1996. Data collection was facilitated by the implantation of the Subsystem of Information about Liveborn Children (SINASC) during that period. The instrument used for data collection was the Declaration of Liveborn Children, an official document of SINASC. The data were fed into a computer and the variables of interest for the present study were surveyed. RESULTS: The data showed that: the incidence of low birth weight was 10%, 31.1% of the mothers were between 20 and 24 years old and 19.5% were younger than 20. With respect to educational level, 68.6% of the mothers had received incomplete primary schooling and 5.7% had higher education. The proportion of cesarean sections was 59.1% and the proportion of spontaneous delivery 40.9%.     

Maternal attachment representations, maternal sensitivity, and the infant–mother attachment relationship.

The role of maternal sensitivity as a mediator accounting for the robust association between maternal attachment representations and the quality of the infant-mother attachment relationship was examined. Sixty mother-infant dyads were observed at home and in the Strange Situation at 13 months, and mothers participated in the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) within the next 6 months. A strong association was found between AAI and Strange Situation classifications. and autonomous mothers were more sensitive at home than were nonautonomous mothers. Mothers in secure relationships were more sensitive at home than mothers in nonsecure relationships. Likewise, infants in secure relationships were more secure as assessed by the Waters' Attachment Q sort than infants in nonsecure relationships. A test of the mediational model revealed that maternal sensitivity accounted for 17% of the relation between AAI and Strange Situation classifications. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lexical development during middle infancy: A mutually driven infant-caregiver process.

Individual differences in mothers' tendencies to describe aspects of the environment occupying their infants' current focus of attention were measured during interactions with their 13-mo-old infants. The frequency of these current maternal utterances was then correlated with measures of their infants' productive lexical development at 13 and 24 mo of age. In 19 dyads in which mothers had been employed outside of the home during their infants' 1st 2 yrs, the correlations between the maternal input measures and infant lexical development were significantly lower than those observed in 19 dyads in which the mothers were at home as full-time caregivers during this period of development. The dissociation of this relationship in dyads with mothers employed outside of the home suggests that early maternal input accounts for some of the variance in subsequent infant lexical development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Chronicity of maternal depressive symptoms, maternal sensitivity, and child functioning at 36 months.

Women (N?=?1,215) and their infants were followed from birth, and maternal reports of depressive symptoms were obtained at 1, 6, 15, 24, and 36 months. Women who never reported symptoms of depression were compared with those who reported symptoms sometimes or chronically. Women with chronic symptoms of depression were the least sensitive when observed playing with their children from infancy through 36 months. Children whose mothers reported feeling depressed performed more poorly on measures of cognitive-linguistic functioning and were rated as less cooperative and more problematic at 36 months. Depression-group differences in school readiness and verbal comprehension were accounted for by maternal sensitivity. Depression-group differences in expressive language and ratings of cooperation were moderated by maternal sensitivity; maternal sensitivity predicted better outcomes more noticeably among children whose mothers reported feeling depressed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal weight gain patterns and birth weight outcome in twin gestation

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between maternal weight gain patterns, based on pregravid body mass index (BMI) and birth weight outcome in twins, and to make specific recommendations for maternal weight gain during twin gestation. METHODS: One hundred eighty-nine twin pregnancies were reviewed retrospectively. Weekly rates of maternal weight gain before 20 weeks, from 20 weeks to delivery, and for total gestation were calculated. Thresholds of weekly maternal weight gain were determined for underweight and normal-weight women. RESULTS: In underweight women, a higher weekly rate of gain before 20 weeks was associated with the birth of both twins weighing at least 2500 g (1.13 versus 0.70 lb/week, P = .017), when compared with mothers of at least one twin weighing less than 2500 g. A higher rate of weight gain from 20 weeks to delivery was associated with the delivery of twins weighing at least 2500 g in both underweight (1.92 versus 1.29 lb/week, P = .031) and normal weight (1.63 versus 1.29 lb/week, P = .046) women. No significant differences in weight gain patterns were found between overweight women delivering twins weighing less than 2500 g or at least 2500 g. A weekly rate of gain from 20 weeks' gestation to delivery of at least 1.75 lb/week in underweight women and at least 1.50 lb/week in normal-weight women was associated with the birth of both twins weighing at least 2500 g. After controlling for other potential determinants of birth weight, the threshold of 1.75 lb/week in underweight women showed a trend toward significance as an independent predictor of both twins weighing at least 2500 g (P = .06). CONCLUSION: Certain maternal weight gain patterns during twin pregnancy are associated with the birth of each twin weighing at least 2500 g. As with singletons, recommendations for maternal weight gain during twin pregnancy can be based on pregravid BMI.     

Mother-to-infant transmission of GB virus C/hepatitis G virus: the role of high-titered maternal viremia and mode of delivery

To study mother-to-infant transmission of GB virus C/hepatitis G virus (GBV-C/HGV), blood samples of infants born to carrier mothers were collected beginning 3 months after birth and were tested for GBV-C/HGV RNA until 1 year of age. Of 2046 mothers, 2.1% were positive for GBV-C/HGV RNA, and 25 of their infants were followed for a median of 12 months. Thirteen infants (52%) were viremic, and infection became persistent in all. Maternal GBV-C/HGV RNA levels of this group were >10(7) copies/mL. Nucleotide sequence comparison in 5 viremic mother-infant pairs revealed a homology of 93%-98.2%, and none delivered by elective cesarean section. In comparison, of the 12 uninfected infants' mothers, 10 had lower GBV-C/HGV RNA levels (mean, 5 x 10(4) copies/mL), and the remaining 2 high-titered mothers had elective cesarean section. Thus, high-titered maternal viremia and mode of delivery are closely associated with the mother-to-infant transmission of GBV-C/HGV to infants, and the infection usually becomes persistent.     

Young adolescent and maternal depression: Assessment, interrelations, and family predictors.

The present study examined (a) the relation between self-report and behavioral ratings of depression for young adolescents and their mothers; (b) the relation between adolescent and maternal depression; and (c) family correlates and predictors of adolescent and maternal depression. Sixty-nine nonclinic adolescents and their mothers completed self-report measures and participated in two behavioral observations 1 year apart. Self-report and behavioral-rating measures of depression were related for mothers but not for adolescents, and maternal depression and adolescent depression were not related to one another. In addition, marital conflict predicted maternal depression as measured by both self-reports and behavioral ratings, whereas parent–adolescent conflict predicted only self-reported adolescent depression. The differences found between maternal and adolescent depression are discussed, and the findings are contrasted with those reported for clinically depressed mothers and children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Placental transfer of maternal poliovirus antibodies in full-term and pre-term infants

This study was designed to investigate the placental transfer of maternal poliovirus antibodies in full-term and pre-term infants. Two hundred healthy, Israeli born mothers and their infants, were enrolled immediately after birth. The study population comprised two groups: a full-term group of 150 mothers and their infants, and a pre-term group of 50 mothers and their infants (gestational age < 35 weeks). Maternal and umbilical cord blood samples were taken in all cases. Antibody titers against the three poliovirus serotypes and a polio virus type 1 strain that caused an outbreak in 1988 (epidemic strain 1) were measured by a microneutralization system. The proportion of individuals with protective titers against each of the poliovirus types tested was slightly lower in the infants compared with their mothers. When protection to all strains combined was tested, the difference between mothers and infants was significant (P < 0.05). Transplacental transfer to epidemic strain 1 was less effective--12% of the premature infants were not protected against it at birth. The geometric mean titers against poliovirus types 1, 3 and epidemic type 1 strain were significantly lower in the pre-term group than in the full-term group. In both the full-term and pre-term groups there were significant linear correlations between the maternal and neonatal antibody titers for each of the polio viruses tested. For all poliovirus types, the transfer of maternal antibodies to the full-term infant was significantly higher than the transfer of maternal antibodies to the pre-term infant (P < 0.001). Owing to diminished transfer of maternal antibodies, pre-term infants are at greater risk of poliovirus infection.     

Maternal Expressed Emotion Predicts Children's Antisocial Behavior Problems: Using Monozygotic-Twin Differences to Identify Environmental Effects on Behavioral Development.

If maternal expressed emotion is an environmental risk factor for children's antisocial behavior problems, it should account for behavioral differences between siblings growing up in the same family even after genetic influences on children's behavior problems are taken into account. This hypothesis was tested in the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study with a nationally representative 1994-1995 birth cohort of twins. The authors interviewed the mothers of 565 five-year-old monozygotic (MZ) twin pairs and established which twin in each family received more negative emotional expression and which twin received more warmth. Within MZ pairs, the twin receiving more maternal negativity and less warmth had more antisocial behavior problems. Qualitative interviews were used to generate hypotheses about why mothers treat their children differently. The results suggest that maternal emotional attitudes toward children may play a causal role in the development of antisocial behavior and illustrate how genetically informative research can inform tests of socialization hypotheses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parenting in mothers with and without attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder.

The authors examined the impact of maternal attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) on parenting behaviors. Sixty mothers between the ages of 31 and 50 with (n = 30) and without (n = 30) ADHD and their 8- to 14-year-old children with ADHD completed self-report and laboratory measures of monitoring of child behavior, consistency in parenting, and parenting problem-solving abilities. These parenting behaviors were selected because of their established links to the development of child behavior problems. As predicted, mothers with ADHD were found to be poorer at monitoring child behavior and less consistent disciplinarians compared with mothers without ADHD. There was some evidence to support the prediction that mothers with ADHD were less effective at problem solving about childrearing issues than control mothers. The differences between the 2 groups of mothers persisted after child oppositional and conduct-disordered behavior were controlled. These results indicate that parenting is an area of functioning that requires more attention in adult ADHD research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)