Gynaecology and obstetrics Books

Book SynopsisA little picture is worth a million words. Chinese proverb Prenatal human development is an extremely complicated process related to genetics, biochemistry, anatomy, and physiology. There are no developmental changes, either chemical or morphologic, without simultaneous changes in molecular organization. The astonishing buildup ofbiostructures always precedes their proper function. The development of an embryo is genetically coded and is based on interactions related to the selective switching on and off of genes. Interactions are cell-to-cell mediated, mediated by extracellular fluids, or mediated by special pathways. Every substance involved in developmental is to be recognized by its target. interactions, before triggering a metabolic or a morphogenic event, Complex physical and immunologic recognitions are involved in the process of differentiation. Small pieces of evidence are collected to create a mosaic picture elucidating the development. This picture is fascinating and represents the biggest biological puzzle: the puzzle of development. There is no doubt that analysis of human prenatal development is a basis for understanding normal and pathologic relationships between structure and function. Today, there are approximately 2000 different inborn congenital anomalies and syndromes. This book attempts to present a complete realistic account of human morphogenesis, the differentiation of structures, using direct photographs of normal specimens obtained from legal medical abortions of unwanted pregnancies. Emphasis has been placed on contemporary techniques: histochemistry and scanning electron microscopy. The text is as simple as possible; meticulous detailed anatomic descriptions have been omitted.Table of ContentsMaterial and methods.- 1. External Form of the Embryo and Developmental Stages.- Stages of human development.- Stage 1: the unicellular stage.- Stage 2: the blastomeric stage.- Stage 3: the blastodermic stage.- Stage 4: the bilaminar embryo.- Stage 5: the trilaminar presomite stage.- Stage 6: the early somite stage.- Stage 7: the stage of limb development.- Stage 8: the late embryonic stage.- Stage 9: the fetal stage.- Stage 10: the perinatal period.- 2. Placenta and Placental Membranes.- The trophoblast of the blastocyst, the trophoblastic shell, and the chorion.- The placenta.- The umbilical cord.- 3. Germ Layers.- 4. Mesenchymal and Mesodermal Organs.- The development of the mesenchyme.- The notochord.- The chordomesodermal canal, notochordal plate, and notochord.- The skeleton.- The axial skeleton.- The skull.- The joints and bands.- The cross-striated musculature.- The cardiovascular organs and hematopoesis.- The heart.- The primitive embryonic circulation.- The arteries.- The veins.- Hematopoesis.- Fetoplacental circulation.- The ureters.- The urinary bladder.- The genital organs.- The adrenals.- 5. Organs with Endodermal Components.- The digestive organs.- The pharynx and brachiogenic pharyngeal complex.- The esophagus.- The stomach.- The duodenum.- The intestines.- The liver.- The pancreas.- The respiratory organs.- The epiglottis and the larynx.- The trachea and the lungs.- The coelem and the mesenteries.- The coelem.- The mesenteries.- 6. Organs with Ectodermal Components.- The skin and epidermal derivatives.- The neuroectodermal organs.- The central nervous system.- The brain.- The spinal cord.- The peripheral nerves.- The neural crest.- The sense organs.- The eyes.- The ears.- 7. Orofacial Development.- The face, nose and palate.- The teeth.- The hypophysis.- Color plates.

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Book SynopsisIrvin M. Cushner, MD, MPH It is both remarkable and, at the same time, a sign of this era of rapid change that one can refer back to the "infancy" of a field which has existed for barely more than a decade. Yet, one now reads of the "maturing" of the family planning and abortion fields, both of which were incorporated into our society and integrated into our health care system within the past ten years. Indeed, in the very year that this book is being prepared, we note the tenth anniversaries of several significant events of 1970: 1) the enactment of Title X of the Public Health Service Act, establishing a Federal program in family planning; 2) the first issuance by a major health-related organization (the APHA) of a policy statement advocating repeal of all abortion laws; and 3) the enactment, by New York State, of an abortion law whose only restric­ tion was that it be performed by a licensed physician and the subse­ quent action, the first by any local health department (New York City), to assure both its implementation and its quality. They were, indeed, eventful days. These three events seemed to presage a then-unprecedented acceptance of fertility regulation as a right and as a needed service.Table of ContentsI Overview.- 1 Second-Trimester Abortion: A Global View.- 2 Second-Trimester Induced Abortion in the United States.- 3 The Availability of Second-Trimester Abortion Services in the United States.- II The Second Trimester of Pregnancy.- 4 Anatomy.- 5 Ultrasonic Evaluation.- 6 Physiology.- III Methods of Second-Trimester Abortion.- 7 Hypertonic Saline Instillation.- 8 Prostaglandin Procedures.- 9 Hyperosmolar Urea.- 10 Dilatation and Evacuation.- 11 Laminaria and Other Adjunctive Methods.- IV Evaluation.- 12 Morbidity and Mortality.- 13 Future Reproduction.- 14 The Role of Health Agencies.- 15 Recommended Procedures for Evaluation of Abortion Techniques.- V Related Issues.- 16 How Much is a Fetus Worth?.- 17 Social Issues.- 18 Psychological Impact on Patients and Staff.- 19 Emotional Issues for Professionals.- 20 Counseling Issues.- 21 Postabortal Contraception.- VI International Considerations: The Dutch Abortion Experience.- 22 Second-Trimester Abortion Services in the Netherlands.- 23 Aspirotomy.- 24 Complications of Aspirotomy.- VII Future Directions.- 25 The Future of Second-Trimester Abortion in the United States.- 26 The Future of Second-Trimester Abortion Throughout the World.- 27 Preventing the Need for Second-Trimester Abortion.- 28 Contragestational Agents.

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Book SynopsisIn recent years there has been an impressive surge of interest in the mecha­ nisms which control the onset and the maintenance of labour. Much of it stems from a constant awareness that gestational age at birth is still an important factor in neonatal mortality and morbidity. Advances in the sensitivity and specificity of immunoassay, the discovery of the prosta­ glandins, new skills in fetal surgery and chronic catheterisation in experi­ mental animals have greatly stimulated further research in this area. In the meantime clinicians became continuously more aware that, despite consider­ able advances in perinatal medicine, gestational age at birth remains the major determinant of neonatal mortality and morbidity. It led them to seek new and better ways of controlling uterine function whether by influencing cervical ripeness, by stimulating or by inhibiting myometrial contractility. This volume uniquely combines knowledge which has been gained from both experimental and clinical research on parturition. A brief outline of current evidence on the control of parturition in experimental animals may be fruitful in delineating problems and hypotheses for further study in human pregnancy. Much of our present day knowledge of human parturition has been gained by checking such data against experimental findings, careful measurements and clinical observations in human pregnancy. It is hoped that the interdisciplinary nature of this volume will enhance the understanding of human parturition and stimulate further research in this area. Thanks are due to Miss H. Wittenberg and Mrs M.Table of ContentsParturition in small mammals.- Parturition in sheep.- Parturition in the rhesus monkey.- Some physiological aspects of uterine contractility in man.- Function of pituitary hormones in human parturition — a comparison with data in the rat.- Corticosteroids and the fetal adrenal in human parturition.- Role of progesterone and oestrogens in the control of the onset of labour in man: a continuing controversy.- Endogenous prostaglandins in human parturition.- Influencing uterine contractility with oxytocin.- Induction of labor with prostaglandins.- Inhibition of uterine contractility with ?-mimetic drugs.- The use of inhibitors of prostaglandin synthesis in obstetrics.- The management of the unripe cervix.- Epidemiology of pre-term labour.- Prevention of pre-term labour.- Epidemiology of postmaturity.- Index of subjects.

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