Ferdinando Antonio Gulino

Management of uterine fibroids in pregnancy: recent trends.

Purpose of review The review analyzes how fibroids may influence pregnancy and how myomas may be modified by pregnancy. The most important clinical aspect concerns the impact of myoma on pregnancy and the possibility of a well tolerated surgical treatment for the mother and her fetus, preserving maternal reproductive capacity. Recent findings Fibroids significantly increase in size during early pregnancy and then decrease in the third trimester. Although most women with uterine fibroids have a regular pregnancy, data from the literature suggest that they may have a higher risk of fertility problems and pregnancy complications. Summary Myomectomy can increase the rate of pregnancy in women with infertility, attempting to restore a normal anatomy and reduce uterine contractility and local inflammation associated with the presence of fibroids, improving the blood supply. Current evidence does not suggest routine myomectomy during pregnancy or at the cesarean birth, as fibroids-related complications are rare and may be overcome by the risks of surgery. However, in selected cases, myomectomy is a feasible and safe technique and associated to a good outcome. The diagnosis of myomas in pregnancy may require attention for the adequate management to preserve maternal and fetal well-being.

Effect of treatment with myo-inositol on semen parameters of patients undergoing an IVF cycle: in vivo study.

Abstract Introduction: Myo-inositol (MI) is a precursor for the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol polyphosphates (PIPs). The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of its administration on semen parameters of male patients undergoing an in vitro fertilization cycles. Methods: In vivo study. Samples were semen of 62 patients divided into three different groups: healthy fertile patients (Group A); patients with oligoasthenospermia (OA) (Group B); control group (CTR). The collected samples were analyzed by optic microscopy in order to evaluate semen’s volume, spermatozoa’s number and motility before and after density-gradient separation method. These parameters were evaluated before and after administration of 4000 mg/die of MI and 400 µg of folic acid for 2 months. The results were analyzed statistically with Students t-test. Results: After treatment there was a significant increase of basal and after density-gradient separation method spermatozoa concentration in Group B, and a significant increase of spermatozoa count after density-gradient separation method in Group A. The motility values were higher in healthy men than patients with OA before treatment, but there was no improvement in both groups after treatment. Conclusions: Exogenous administration of MI significantly improves semen’s parameters both in patients with OA and in normal fertile men.

Prosthetic surgery versus native tissue repair of cystocele: literature review

Cystocele is the most common pelvic organ prolapse. It is defined as the descent of the bladder into the anterior vaginal wall. Aging is significantly associated with the prevalence and severity of pelvic organ prolapse. Treatment may be conservative or surgical according to symptoms, prolapse degree and not forgetting both patient and doctor preferences. Identify the most efficient surgical treatment to treat cystocele and its recurrences. Scientific literature was reviewed searching PubMed/MEDLINE database for articles published between 1996 and 2015 and using the terms pelvic organ prolapse, cystocele, mesh surgery, traditional repair, pelvic organ prolapse recurrence, complications, sexual function. There are two different surgical approaches for the treatment of cystocele: traditional repair and mesh repair. Prosthetic treatment gives higher anatomical success rate and fewer recurrence while traditional anterior repair has less complications. Surgical treatment in general improves both the anatomical success rate and the quality of life. The choice of surgery, between traditional and mesh repair, has to be personalized related to the prolapse grade and women tissues.

What Is the Rate of Incomplete Fetal Anatomic Surveys During a Second-Trimester Scan? Retrospective Observational Study of 4000 Nonobese Pregnant Women

The purpose of this study was to estimate the rate of incomplete fetal anatomic surveys during a second‐trimester scan due to an unfavorable fetal position in a nonobese population.

Nerve growth factor (NGF) levels in follicular fluid of infertile patients undergoing to in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle.

Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the levels of NGF in follicular fluid and serum samples, and to correlate them with some characteristics of the patients (age) and of the IVF protocol (E2 levels, number of collected oocytes, used FSHr IU) to investigate its rule in the folliculogenesis. Methods: This study examined a sample of 78 women undergoing to FIVET/ICSI cycles since October 2011 to March 2013. NGF levels were determinated in follicular fluid (FF) and serum sample using enzyme immunoassay ELISA kit for NGF. Results: The NGF level was significantly higher in FF (213.76 pg/ml) than in basal serum (46.47 pg/ml (p < 0.001) and in serum sample of the pick-up day (60.75 pg/ml (p < 0.001). In FF, the levels of NGF were positively correlated to age of women (corr.coeff. r = 0.44) and units of FSHr used during stimulation protocol (corr.coeff r = 0.34). Discussion: Our results demonstrate that the FF levels are higher than the blood; so there is a local production of NGF in the ovarian follicle, important for the follicle’s growth and oocyte quality. We could also say that the increase of NGF levels is correlated to a lower ovary response, that is obviously less in the older women.

Pallister–Killian syndrome: Cytogenetics and molecular investigations of mosaic tetrasomy 12p in prenatal chorionic villus and in amniocytes. Strategy of prenatal diagnosis

OBJECTIVE Pallister-Killian syndrome (PKS) is a rare, sporadic genetic disorder caused by mosaic tetrasomy of the short arm of chromosome 12 (12p). Clinically, PKS is characterized by several systemic abnormalities, such as intellectual impairment, hearing loss, epilepsy, hypotonia, craniofacial dysmorphism, pigmentary skin anomalies, epilepsy, and a variety of congenital malformations. Prenatally, PKS can be suspected in the presence of ultrasound anomalies: diaphragmatic hernia, rhizomelic micromelia, hydrops fetalis, fetal overweight, ventriculomegaly in the central nervous system, congenital heart defects, or absent visualization of the stomach. In all these cases, a detailed genetic study is required. PKS is diagnosed by prenatal genetic analysis through chorionic villus sampling, genetic amniocentesis, and cordocentesis. CASE REPORT We report two cases of PKS with prenatal diagnosis of isochromosome 12p made by cytogenetic studies. The first case is of a 36-year-old pregnant woman who underwent genetic chorionic villus sampling at 13th weeks of gestation after 1st trimester prenatal ultrasound revealed clinical features of PKS: flat nasal bridge and fetal hydrops. The second case is of a 32-year-old pregnant woman with genetic amniocentesis at 17th weeks of gestation that showed mos46,XX[21]/47,XX,+i(12p) associated to PKS. CONCLUSION New molecular cytogenetic techniques array comparative genomic hybridization and fluorescence in-situ hybridization in association with conventional karyotype are pivotal innovative tools to search for chromosomic anomalies and for a complete prenatal diagnosis, especially in cases such as PKS where array comparative genomic hybridization analysis alone could not show mosaicism of i(12p).

Placenta accreta and balloon catheterization: the experience of a single center and an update of latest evidence of literature

AbstractPurposeWe studied the efficacy of using pre-cesarean delivery (CD) temporary occlusion of internal iliac arteries with balloon catheters in case of placenta previa–accreta in terms of maternal and neonatal outcomes and to test accuracy of ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for prenatal diagnosis.MethodsFrom March 2014 to January 2018, women with an US and/or MRI diagnosis of placenta previa–accreta and a planned delivery were enrolled and divided into two groups: balloon catheterization group (women treated with preoperative catheters and CD) and control group (women candidates to elective CD).Results37 patients were enrolled: 16 in balloon catheterization group and 21 in control group. Significant differences were detected in estimated blood loss. Prophylactic balloon catheterization could reduce intraoperative red blood cell transfusion. The incidence of hysterectomy was lower in balloon group. No statistical difference was found for neonatal outcomes. Both US and MRI have showed to be useful and complementary to diagnose placenta previa–accreta.ConclusionsTemporal, perioperative, and prophylactic positioning of balloon vascular catheters is an effective method for managing severe hemorrhage caused by placenta previa–accreta as it reduced intraoperative blood loss, lessened perioperative hemostatic measures and intraoperative red cell transfusions, and reduced hysterectomies.

Preeclampsia and the challenge of early prediction: reality or utopia? State of art and critical review of literature

Abstract Purpose: The challenge to obtain improved predictive tools, able to identify women destined to develop preeclampsia (PE), is raising the interest of researchers for the attractive chance to allow for timely initiation of prophylactic therapy, appropriate antenatal surveillance, and better-targeted research into preventive interventions. We aimed to gather all the evidence reported up to now in scientific literature relating to all prediction tests for PE. Materials and methods: We searched articles on conventional literature platforms from January 1952 to August 2016, using the terms “preeclampsia,” “gestational preeclampsia,” and “gestational hypertensive disorders” combined with “predictive test” and “risk assessment.” Abstracts/titles identified by the search were screened by three investigators. Results: The search identified 203 citations, of which 154 potentially relevant after the initial evaluation. Among these studies, 20 full articles were excluded, therefore, 134 primary studies met the criteria for inclusion and were analyzed. Conclusions: Current evidence suggests that a combination of several features may provide the best predictive accuracy for the identification of PE. Large-scale, multicenter, multiethnic, prospective trials are required to propose an ideal combination of markers for routine screening.

Which are the most common thrombophilic genetic nucleotide polymorphisms in infertile women undergoing an IVF cycle

Abstract Introduction: Thrombophilia is considered one of the causes of infertility, especially after repeated failures of IVF techniques. The aim of this work is to evaluate the incidence of thrombophilia in women who underwent IVF cycles and assess the outcome of the techniques. Methods: In vivo study. The study sample was composed of 262 women undergoing a fresh cycle of in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle of Intracytoplasmatic Sperm Injection (ICSI) from July 2012 to December 2014 in the Center of Physiopathology of Human Reproduction. Amongst these patients, we have selected 96 patients with indication for thrombophilia screening. Results: Thrombophilia screening detects that only 8% (n = 8) of the patients was negative to all the studied mutations, while the remaining 92% (n = 88) was positive to at least one mutation. The most common mutations were MTHFR gene (C677T) (91,84%), ACE gene (54,88%) and PAI-1 gene (69,44%). Conclusion: Our results showed an increased frequency of genetic nucleotide polymorphisms in women reporting failures in IVF techniques. Differently from scientific literature data, in our work, the most frequent mutation affects the enzyme gene MTHFR, particularly the C667T mutation; on the other side, mutations of factor V and II are less common.