There is a widely held belief that induction of labor increases the risk of c-section. This is something that has been widely promoted by many OB/GYNs, nurses, midwives, doulas, and patients alike. I can not tell you how many times I have heard, “Don’t let them induce you.” I think that so many health care […]
Tag Archives: pregnancy
A water birth isn’t natural it’s an intervention
The joint statement on laboring in water and delivering in water (the latter also known as immersion births) from the American Academy Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is making the rounds. I’ve linked to the full statement above, but in essence it says that some women find laboring in water […]
Using pot in pregnancy linked to stillbirth, new study
Legality and safety (from a health perspective) are two different things. Cigarettes, alcohol, and opioids while all legal have health consequences. Some more concerning than others. This is especially true in pregnancy. Chemicals (whether they are naturally occurring or not) may have effects on blood flow to the uterus or at a microscopic level in the […]
Who is keeping a pregnant woman on life support against her wishes? The hospital or Texas?
Brain death is death. This is one of the definitions of death. Even in Texas. Because brain death is death a do not resuscitate (DNR) order or invalidating a DNR are both meaningless, because you don’t do procedures on dead bodies. This is why taking someone off a ventilator who is brain dead is not […]
Acupuncture does not improve pregnancy rates in IVF
Acupuncture has become, for many women, an accepted part of their infertility journey. Several studies, including a meta-analysis of 24 studies published in the journal Fertility Sterility in 2012, indicated higher pregnancy rates among women who had undergone acupuncture as part of their treatment protocol compared with women who had no acupuncture or a sham procedure. […]
Listeria and pregnancy, when discussing risk it’s all perspective
Emily Oster has a book coming out entitled Take Back Your Pregnancy. In preparation for the book launch, as most authors do, she wrote a nice piece in the Wall Street Journal about decision-making, risks, and how some of what OB/GYNs recommend during pregnancy isn’t always evidence based. In particular, she mentions listeria, a bacteria […]
Can Georgia law force a woman to have a c-section for a non viable, premature fetus?
The new crop of laws in the Unites States using the premise of “fetal pain” to restrict abortion can only be described as unscience (an Orwellian theme that sadly fits). The latest is the new Georgia abortion law HB 954, which the OB/GYN Society of Georgia states is “murky” and difficult to interpret. HB 954 […]
Irish Catholic Bishops reveal ignorance in statement on death of Savita Halappanavar
The Irish Catholic Bishops have seen fit to clarify the church’s view on gynecology given Savita Halappanavar’s death from sepsis at 17 weeks in her pregnancy and the concern that evacuating her uterus was delayed because the fetus still had a heart beat. The full statement is here, but this is the excerpt I find […]
How sick must a pregnant woman be in Ireland for her doctor to say her life is at risk?
While a full analysis of the tragic case of Savita Halappanavar’s death from sepsis at 17 weeks in her pregnancy is not possible without access to her medical records, there is a key piece of information provided by her husband that supports his claim that a termination was not allowed or was delayed because of […]
The physical dangers for mothers who deliver prematurely
Mothers who deliver prematurely face serious health risks that are often neglected when we talk about prematurity. Today, in honor of Savita Halappanavar’s death from sepsis that was a direct result of her previable premature delivery, I would like to let the world in on the physical perils faced by mothers who deliver prematurely. Many […]
