Health Diaries > Health News > Women's Health News > Pregnancy
May 7, 2006
California Assembly Passes "Tom Cruise Law"
In a statement, The American College of Radiology applauded the California Assembly for passing AB2360, the "Tom Cruise law," which would prohibit the sale of diagnostic ultrasound equipment to anyone but appropriately licensed health care providers. (National Ledger)
March 20, 2006
RU-486 Abortion Pill Causes Two More Deaths
The FDA has reported two new fatalities caused by the RU-486 abortion pill. Five other women have died after taking the pill since 2000. The cause of the deaths has not been determined.
The FDA said yesterday that it did not know whether the clostridium bacteria played any role in the most recent deaths, but the agency did establish that it was present in four earlier fatalities. One other death related to medical abortion was in a woman who had an ectopic pregnancy -- a condition where RU-486 is not considered appropriate. (Washington Post)
Melania Trump Gives Birth to Boy
Donald Trump's wife, Melania Trump, has given birth to a baby. The boy, named Barron William Trump, is Melania's first child and Donald's fourth.
"Everyone's perfect," Trump said in a telephone interview on MSNBC's "Imus in the Morning," about 20 minutes after the arrival of his fifth child. (ABC News)
January 25, 2006
Brooke Shields Expecting Second Child
Brooke Shields, who is pregnant with her second child, says of her baby due in May: "It's a girl!"
"I wasn't sure I was going to make this public," Shields told People magazine in a report Tuesday. "I'm thrilled for my daughter to have a little friend. Two Tauruses, it's a huge trick being played on me." (Washington Post)
December 9, 2005
Matt Damon and Luciana Barroso Expecting Child
Access Hollywood has reported that Matt Damon and his fiancee Luciana Barroso are expecting their first child. Barroso, who is three months pregnant, has a 7-year-old daughter from a previous marriage.
The couple met at the Miami club, Crobar, where Barroso was bartending and he proposed to her around Labor Day. No wedding date has been announced.
(UPI)
Paxil May Cause Heart Defects in Newborns
The FDA has issued a warning to pregnant women about the antidepressant Paxil, saying that the drug increases the risk of heart defects in newborns.
The advisory is based on early results from two studies, which found that women who took Paxil in the first three months of pregnancy were 1 1/2 to two times more likely to give birth to a child with a heart defect than women who took other antidepressants or pregnant women overall. The studies found that Paxil had a risk of birth defects that other common antidepressants did not. (Washington Post)
November 28, 2005
Once a C-Section, Always a C-Section?
When Karri Rickard moved from Pennsylvania to Maryland, it never occurred to her that she would have a problem finding a hospital to deliver her baby. But she did. So much trouble, in fact, that Rickard and her husband are giving up their home in Frederick and moving back to Pittsburgh.
"It's sad, because we're happy here," said Rickard, 32, who headed back to Pennsylvania this month with her husband and four children. "But we want to be somewhere where they'll let me trust my body." (Washington Post)
November 10, 2005
Down Syndrome Now Detectable in First Trimester
A first-trimester screening test can reliably identify fetuses likely to be born with Down syndrome, providing expectant women with that information much earlier in a pregnancy than current testing allows, according to a major study being released today. (Washington Post)
October 12, 2005
OTC Drug Use Common Among Pregnant Women
Doctors nationwide regularly recommend that, when needed, their pregnant patients take such drugs as Tylenol, Robitussin and antihistamines for everything from the common cold to back pain to sleeplessness. But the study concludes that these medicines and others need to be studied a lot more before they can be considered safe for mother and fetus. (Washington Post)
October 6, 2005
Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Expecting
Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise are expecting a baby.
Holmes' pregnancy was reported yesterday by People magazine. The two became engaged in June. (Seattle Times)
September 15, 2005
Britney Spears Gives Birth to Boy by Cesarean
Britney Spears has given birth to a baby boy, Us Weekly reported. The baby was born Wednesday by Caesarean section at the Santa Monica UCLA Medical Center in California, the magazine said. No other details were available. (Washington Post)
September 8, 2005
Babies in the Womb Exposed to Toxic Chemicals
Babies in the womb are being exposed to a shocking cocktail of chemicals that can cause cancer in later life and have gender-bending qualities, research has revealed. (The Daily Mail)
August 24, 2005
Fetal Pain Felt in 7th Month
A review of medical evidence has found that fetuses probably don't feel pain until the final months of pregnancy, a challenge to abortion opponents who hope discussions about fetal pain make women think twice about ending pregnancies. (USA Today)
August 20, 2005
Failure of Morning After Pill Does Not Affect Pregnancy
There do not appear to be any adverse consequences for the mother or the developing fetus in pregnancies that occur despite the use of the so-called "morning after" pill levonorgestrel, new research shows. (Yahoo)
May 4, 2005
Episiotomy Complications Outweigh Benefits
For years, some doctors believed that an episiotomy, an incision to enlarge the vaginal opening during childbirth, would prevent spontaneous tearing that would be harder to repair. They also believed the procedure would help women avoid incontinence and improve their sex lives ... It turns out those beliefs were myths. (AP)
February 28, 2005
Mercury Damage to Babies
"Lower IQ levels linked to mercury exposure in the womb costs the United States $8.7 billion a year in lost earnings potential."
February 16, 2005
Pollution is Linked to Fetal Harm
"Exposure to air pollution, even in the womb, may be linked to genetic changes associated with an increased risk of cancer."
February 7, 2005
Doctors Urge Longer Breast-Feeding
The American Academy of Pediatrics issued an updated statement on breast-feeding in an effort to get more women to practice it longer for the benefit of infant and mother.
December 2, 2004
Ultrasounds During Pregnancy
An Australian study says that having several ultrasounds during pregnancy does not harm the unborn baby or restrict the child’s growth or development early in life.
