Pregnancy – REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ALERTS

21 Apr

Black maternal health advocates, researchers press on amid federal funding cuts

MauraLatest NewsBlack Women, Healthcare, Maternal & Child Health, Pregnancy, Reproductive rights

Before everything went black, Tamika Jackson felt like she was drowning. While in labor giving birth to her baby boy, her body felt heavy and her breaths shallow. “I can’t breathe,” she croaked to the anesthesiologist. “If you couldn’t breathe, you wouldn’t be able to speak,” she recalled the doctor telling her, dismissing her as having a “panic attack.” Minutes later, the 37-year-old’s lungs gave out. Her heart stopped beating.

06 Apr

Researchers uncover 195 genetic risk factors driving women’s reproductive diseases

AlanLatest NewsFertility, Healthcare, International, Pregnancy, Reproductive Health, womens health care

In a recent study published in the journal Nature Medicine, researchers in Estonia and Norway identified genetic risk factors associated with female reproductive health conditions through genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and assessed their clinical significance.

21 Mar

Maternal Mortality Crisis Persists Despite Medical Advance

AlanLatest NewsHealthcare, International, Pregnancy, Reproductive rights

In 2020, approximately 287,000 women worldwide died from pregnancy- or childbirth-related complications, equivalent to one death every 2 minutes. Hemorrhage and hypertensive disorders, such as preeclampsia, remain the leading causes of maternal mortality globally, highlighting persistent gaps in access to effective care in low-income countries.

10 Jan

Missouri senator renews push to ban shackling of pregnant women in city, county jails

PatLatest NewsIncarceration, Missouri, Pregnancy, Shackling

Seven years ago, Missouri banned the shackling of pregnant women in state prisons. State Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, a Republican from Arnold, is hoping to expand the law this year to include city and county jails.https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-bill-ban-shackling-pregnant-women-jails/

27 Dec

Reproductive health newsmakers included pregnant women, judges and anti-abortion activists in 2024

BarbraLatest NewsAbortion Ban, Healthcare, Pregnancy, Reproductive rights, travel, United States

Galvanized by a pivotal election almost two years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned federal abortion protections, patients, doctors, and activists in 2024 fought for renewed and expanded reproductive rights, while others pushed for more restrictions. These are some of the people and organizations that had an impact on reproductive health law and abortion access this year.

19 Dec

When states suppress maternal mortality data, pregnant people pay the price

PatLatest NewsHealthcare, Pregnancy, Reproductive rights, United States

Last month, reports emerged of efforts in both Texas and Georgia to halt investigation and analysis of maternal mortality in the years since Roe v. Wade—the Supreme Court ruling that protected the right to an abortion—was overturned. These efforts to hinder examination of the impacts of strict state abortion laws on pregnant people are a political play that only serves to put women and families at risk of even greater harm.

02 May

In ‘The Unexpected,’ Emily Oster tackles the emotional toll of difficult pregnancies

PatLatest NewsHealthcare, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Complications, United States

Economist Emily Oster made a name for herself using data to tackle big questions about pregnancy in her 2013 blockbuster book Expecting Better. Now, she's returning to the topic with a book on how to navigate difficult pregnancies and serious medical issues.

27 Apr

What abortion politics has to do with new rights for pregnant workers

PatLatest NewsAbortion Accommodation, Attorney General, EEOC, Pregnancy, United States

This week, attorneys general from 17 Republican-led states sued the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over something they say is an "abortion accommodation mandate."

27 Mar

Mental health & pregnancy + sudden cardiac arrest in women

BarbraLatest News, United StatesCardiac Care, Mental health, Pregnancy, Woman's Health

Every year, about 350,000 people suffer sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital. Almost 90 percent of all cases are deadly. 40 percent of these episodes are made up by women. While men and women experience different symptoms of heart disease, the risks of sudden cardiac arrest are different, too. Nancy Dagefoerde, an advanced practice nurse with the OSF HealthCare Cardiovascular Institute, says sudden cardiac arrest can happen to any adult, mostly those 30 and older.

21 Feb

Female Reproductive Factors Could Predict COPD Risk

BarbraLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, COPD, Healthcare, Pregnancy, Reproductive Health

Several female reproductive factors across the life cycle were significantly associated with increased COPD risk, including age at menarche, number of children, infertility, pregnancy outcomes, and age at menopause.

20 Feb

Alabama Supreme Court’s Frozen Embryo Decision Could Jeopardize IVF

BarbraLatest NewsAlabama, legislation, Personhood, Pregnancy, State Supreme Court, United States

The Alabama Supreme Court ruled 7-1 on Friday that frozen embryos qualify as children under state law. Reproductive rights advocates say that the decision could have a wide-ranging impact on in vitro fertilization.

10 Sep

Extreme heat exposure during pregnancy can raise risk of severe delivery complications, new study finds

BarbraUnited StatesClimate Change, Heat Exposure, Pregnancy, United States

Pregnant people exposed to extreme heat are at higher risk of developing life-threatening complications during labor and delivery, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Thursday. The research adds to a growing body of evidence showing the impact extreme heat has on a pregnancy, while also making a distinction between long-term exposure and events like heat waves.

09 Sep

Pregnant women living in polluted areas more likely to have smaller babies, study finds

BarbraInternationalInternational, Pollution, Pregnancy

Women exposed to air pollution give birth to smaller babies, according to research that will be presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress in Milan, Italy.