Patricia M. Buckfield

Some Maternal and Child Developmental Characteristics Associated with Breast Feeding: A Report from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Child Development Study

Some maternal and child developmental characteristics associated with breast feeding: A report from the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Child Development Study. A study of some maternal, experiential, and developmental characteristics of 1037 three‐year‐old children who were breast fed for varying lengths of time was described. The results indicated that those children who breast fed longest had advantaged mothers and more developmental experiences. When these differences were controlled by matching breast fed with non breast fed children, there were no significant advantages in developmental status found consistently to characterise the breast fed children. It was concluded that alleged “probable” developmental benefits to children from breast feeding should be more properly considered “possible”.

BILATERAL CONGENITAL CHOANAL ATRESIA ASSOCIATED WITH ANOMALIES OF THE FOREGUT

3 patients with bilateral osseous congenital choanal atresia (CCA) are described. In each instance there were associated anomalies of the foregut. The necessity for early diagnosis of bilateral CCA is discussed. Management involves decisions about the timing and type of surgery to remove the obstruction. A method of ensuring an adequate airway until an infant can withstand surgery is described and an operative technique for removal of the obstruction via the anterior nares, which gave good results in 2 out of the 3 patients, is outlined.

Obstetrics and the family: Identification of mothers at risk for parenting failure, and methods of support☆

Abstract The nurturing of a child has been termed the “Irrational commitment” [1]—“the enduring, irrational commitment of one or more adults in care and joint activity with the child.” The paper examines ways of facilitating this kind of caring. It is not enough to utilise the extensive technology and skills now available in obstetrics and paediatrics if there is a failure to ensure that the parents are able to nurture and enjoy their new infant. Success can only be claimed if parents are assisted in establishing a mutually satisfying relationship with their infants, i.e. they make an irrational commitment to the nurturing of their children. Results from a study of early identification and prediction of major parenting difficulty within the maternity hospital [7] are given and some of the various methods of early intervention and support now being undertaken to assist in the establishment of good nurturing between mothers and infants are described.

The outcome of twin pregnancies in Dunedin 1968-1978.

Summary: Of 14,473 pregnancies in Dunedin City between 1968 and 1978, 1.07% were twin (1 in 93.4 pregnancies). Perinatal mortality has decreased over this period for both twins and singletons. To examine the hypothesis that the tendency for twins to be preterm and small for gestational age explained their increased mortality and morbidity, groups of twins and singletons of like birth‐weight and gestational age were compared. No significant differences were found, suggesting that birth‐weight and gestational age are the major determinants of outcome, and that a twin should fare no worse than a singleton of similar birth‐weight and gestational age.

A girl with severe expression of the Holt‐Oram gene

The case of a baby girl with severe manifestations of the Holt‐Oram syndrome is described. She had a complete a‐v canal defect, and only a stump of upper limb tissue on the left side. Defects as severe as these have not before been reported in the Holt‐Oram syndrome. Three relatives were affected to a very much lesser extent. Some comments are made on the Holt‐Oram syndrome and on the nature of the gene which causes it.