• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.27 no.2 s.46
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• pp.242-257
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• 1994

In Korea, female workforce has reached more than 40% of total working population, but the effects of work on spontaneous abortion are yet to be examined. This study as conducted to investigate the occupational effects on spontaneous abortion. Medical insurance claim data were used to examine the effects of the employment status and industry of employment on spontaneous abortion. The study population was composed of females, aged $15{\sim}44$, who were the beneficiary of medical insurance in the month of June, 1993. The working females covered by medical insurance for industrial workers, had the highest age-adjusted Spontaneous Abortion rate (SAB rate=claim frequency of spontaneous abortion/claim frequency of complication of pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium), 6.65% whereas female dependants of medical insurance for industrial workers had the lowest age-adjusted SAB rate, 4.54%. Among industrial workers, the workers in manufacturing industry had the highest age-adjusted Spontaneous Abortion ratio(SAB ratio=claim frequency of spontaneous abortion/claim frequency of completly normal delivery), 43.2/100 whereas those in financing and service industry had age-adjusted SAB ratio, 16.2/100 and 20.5/100, respectively. The results of the study suggest the adverse effect of manufacturing Industry on reproduction. Work environments such as chemical exposures, overwork, awkard posture, and job stress should be further studied for their effects on reproductive functions of female.

• Journal of Haehwa Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.95-104
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• 2009

This study was carried out through the investigation of Oriental and Western medical literature and we was discovered these conclusions about the etiology, treatment, prescription of habitual abortion. The result of this study were as follows : 1. The habitual abortion does agree with 'Hwaltae(滑胎)' and means that spontaneous abortion repeats three times or more. 2. The etiology of habitual abortion is divided 'Deficiency of kidney'(腎虛), 'Deficiency of vital energy and blood'(氣血虛弱), 'Deficiency of yin'(陰虛), 'Clotted blood'(瘀血). 3. By means of cause, the treatment of habitual abortion was mainly made use of 'Tonifying kidney and promoting spleen'(補腎健脾), 'Invigorating vital energy and nourishing blood'(補氣補血), 'Supplementing yin fluid and alleviating fever'(滋陰淸熱), 'Resuscitating blood and removing clotted blood'(活血祛瘀). 4. By means of cause, the prescription of habitual abortion was frequent made use of Bosingochunghwan(補腎固沖丸), Bosingotae$\breve{u}$m(補腎固胎飮), Taesanbans$\breve{o}$ksan(泰山磐石散), $Ch\breve{o}ng\breve{u}mboinghwan$(千金保孕丸), Agyotang(阿膠湯), Gungguibojungtang(芎歸補中湯), Taewon$\breve{u}$m(胎元飮), Gotaej$\breve{o}$n(固胎煎), Baekchulj$\breve{o}$n(白朮煎), Sas$\breve{o}$ngsan(四聖散), Gyegibokryonghwan(桂枝茯苓丸), $Dangguich\breve{o}ng\breve{u}mtang$(當歸千金湯). 5. The Western medical etiology of habitual abortion(recurrent spontaneous early pregnancy loss) is divided Genetic factor(Chromosome aberration), Anatomical deformity, Endocrinologic disorder, Infection, Immunologic factor, Unknown factor(Others).

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.141-145
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• 1996

Habitual pregnancy loss has been defined as three or more consecutive spontaneous abortions. The rate of recurrent pregnancy loss is 2% to 5% of reproducible women. Half of this failure can be explained by genetic, hormonal, infectious, and anatomic factors. And eighty percent of the unexplained failures are proposed to have an immunologic cause. The antiphospholipid antibodies are characterized by prolonged phospholipid-dependent coagulation test (known as APTT or Russel viper venom), thrombosis, thrombocytopenia, and fetal loss. The association of antiphospholipid antibodies with one or more of these characteristic clinical features has been termed the antiphospholipid syndrome. We have experienced a case of successful live birth after treated a woman with heparin and aspirin who has experienced spontaneous abortion four times with antiphospholipid antibodies and present it with the review of literature.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.165-170
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• 2005

Objective: The aim of present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of low-dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) therapy in women with recurrent spontaneous abortions (RSA) and elevated pre-conceptional peripheral blood CD56+Natural Killer (NK) cell percentage. Study Design: Retrospective case control study. Materials and Methods: Thirty three women with RSA and elevated pre-conceptional peripheral blood CD56+NK cell percentage who had received low-dose IVIg therapy (400 mg/kg per day, every 4 week, until 20 gestational weeks) were included in this study. Controls were nine women with RSA and elevated pre-conceptional peripheral blood CD56+ Natural Killer (NK) cell percentage who had not received IVIg therapy were included in this study. Medical records of study and control groups were retrospectively analyzed and we compared the successful pregnancy outcomes between two groups. Successful pregnancy outcome was defined as pregnancy ongoing beyond 25 gestational weeks. Results: Age, number of previous abortions, pre-conceptional CD56+NK cell percentage and type of RSA were not statistically different between two groups. Otherwise, twenty-five women who received IVIg therapy (25/33, 75.8%) but, only three women who had not received (3/9, 33.3%) had a successful pregnancy outcome and the rate difference between two groups was statistically significant. Conclusion: Based on our study, low-dose IVIg therapy have a effective role in treatment of RSA patients with elevated pre-conceptional peripheral blood CD56+ Natural Killer (NK) cell percentage, but more larger scaled prospective study is needed for available of conclusive evidence.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.118-125
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• 2015

Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate the pregnancy potential of immature (metaphase I or germinal vesicle stage) oocytes retrieved in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. Methods: A total of 1,871 couples with infertility underwent 2,984 ICSI cycles. Cycles in which three or fewer oocytes were retrieved were included in this study in order to evaluate the pregnancy potential of immature oocytes. Cycles were divided into five groups (group I-V), according to the maturation status of the oocytes at the time of cumulus cell removal and ICSI. The fertilization and pregnancy rates after ICSI were analyzed and compared among the study groups based on the maturation status of the retrieved oocytes. Results: The retrieval of only immature oocytes was associated with a significant decrease in the fertilization rate ($76.1%{\pm}37.3%$ vs. $49.0%{\pm}49.1%$, $66.7%{\pm}48.7%$; group I vs. group II, group III, respectively) and the average number of transferred embryos ($1.5{\pm}0.7$ vs. $1.1{\pm}0.4$, $1.1{\pm}0.6$). The cycle cancellation rate was significantly higher when only immature oocytes were retrieved. The clinical pregnancy rate decreased significantly when the transferred embryos had originated from immature oocytes (16.9% vs. 10.3%, 1.2%). Conclusion: In ICSI cycles, the fertilization potential and pregnancy potential of the immature oocytes retrieved in ICSI cycles were inferior to those of mature oocytes. Therefore, increasing the number of injectable oocytes and transferrable embryos by using immature oocytes after their spontaneous in vitro maturation does not necessarily improve pregnancy outcomes.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.17-35
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• 1998

Medication used during pregnancy may affect the growth of fetus and maintenance of pregnancy so that it may cause fetal deformity or abortion. Before 1940 it was recognized that only genetic factor could affect the incidence of fetal deformity and the teratogen was protected by placenta barrier. But since the report that Thalidomide caused phocomelia was announced in l962 and 1962, it was acknowledged that the placenta barrier was imperfect. In oriental medical care, there were so many prescription used during pregnancy for nausea, threatened abortion, recurrent spontaneous abortion and it was acknowledged that those medication did not harm both maternity and fetus. Most of them are composed of the material that was not classified as prohibition during pregnancy. But we thought that it should be demonstrated through objective methods that these materials do not affect the incidence of fetal deformity or abortion and have the effect of preventing abortion and maintenance of pregnancy. As the first step of that study we researched 78 prescription and each materials, their kinds and using frequency, used for illness and symptoms during pregnancy written in Dongeuibokam(東醫寶鑑) so that we got to know the tendency about what materials are used for each illness and symptoms.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.8
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• pp.370-379
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• 2022

Human pregnancy is a delicate and complex process where multiorgan interactions between two independent systems, the mother, and her fetus, maintain pregnancy. Intercellular interactions that can define homeostasis at the various cellular level between the two systems allow uninterrupted fetal growth and development until delivery. Interactions are needed for tissue remodeling during pregnancy at both fetal and maternal tissue layers. One of the mechanisms that help tissue remodeling is via cellular transitions where epithelial cells undergo a cyclic transition from epithelial to mesenchymal (EMT) and back from mesenchymal to epithelial (MET). Two major pregnancy-associated tissue systems that use EMT, and MET are the fetal membrane (amniochorion) amnion epithelial layer and cervical epithelial cells and will be reviewed here. EMT is often associated with localized inflammation, and it is a well-balanced process to facilitate tissue remodeling. Cyclic transition processes are important because a terminal state or the static state of EMT can cause accumulation of proinflammatory mesenchymal cells in the matrix regions of these tissues and increase localized inflammation that can cause tissue damage. Interactions that determine homeostasis are often controlled by both endocrine and paracrine mediators. Pregnancy maintenance hormone progesterone and its receptors are critical for maintaining the balance between EMT and MET. Increased intrauterine oxidative stress at term can force a static (terminal) EMT and increase inflammation that are physiologic processes that destabilize homeostasis that maintain pregnancy to promote labor and delivery of the fetus. However, conditions that can produce an untimely increase in EMT and inflammation can be pathologic. These tissue damages are often associated with adverse pregnancy complications such as preterm prelabor rupture of the membranes (pPROM) and spontaneous preterm birth (PTB). Therefore, an understanding of the biomolecular processes that maintain cyclic EMT-MET is critical to reducing the risk of pPROM and PTB. Extracellular vesicles (exosomes of 40-160 nm) that can carry various cargo are involved in cellular transitions as paracrine mediators. Exosomes can carry a variety of biomolecules as cargo. Studies specifically using exosomes from cells undergone EMT can carry a pro-inflammatory cargo and in a paracrine fashion can modify the neighboring tissue environment to cause enhancement of uterine inflammation.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2022

A disrupted immune system during pregnancy is involved in pregnancy complications, such as spontaneous abortion, preeclampsia, and recurrent pregnancy loss. This study examined the role of toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 and ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD [c-terminal caspase recruitment domain]) in pregnancy complications using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced miscarriage mice model. Incidences of miscarriage and embryonic resorption were examined at 9.5 days of pregnancy in wild-type (WT), ASC knockout (KO), and TLR4 KO mice after injecting them with LPS. The fetuses and placenta were obtained after sacrifice at 15.5 days of pregnancy. A significantly lower frequency of fetus absorption was found in TLR4 KO mice, whereas corresponding absorption outcomes were strongly induced in the WT and ASC KO mice upon an LPS injection. As expected, TLR4 KO mice were resistant to LPS-induced abortion. A histological analysis of the miscarried placenta showed increasing levels of the eosin staining of spongiotrophoblast cells without any obvious difference between WT and ASC KO mice. These results suggest that TLR4 KO mice are resistant to LPS, which affects pregnancy persistence, whereas WT and ASC KO mice show high miscarriage rates due to LPS. Moreover, the ASC adaptor is not directly involved in LPS-induced miscarriages, and the NLRP3 inflammasome can be activated by other proteins in the absence of ASC.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.1670-1676
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• 2007

Fifty repeat breeder (RB) Friesian cows were allocated to five groups of 10 cows each, to determine the effect of progesterone (P4) supplement on P4 concentrations and pregnancy rates during the periods of corpus luteum (CL) formation and development between days 2-7 and 7-12 following a spontaneous or $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$-induced estrus. Cows were artificially inseminated during $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$-induced (PGF-P4-d2 and PGF-P4-d7 groups) or spontaneous (S-P4-d2, S-P4-d7, and control groups) estrus. Progesterone-releasing intravaginal device (PRID) devoid of estrogen capsule were inserted either on d 2 (PGF-P4-d2 and S-P4-d2 groups) or d 7 (PGF-P4-d7 and S-P4-d7 groups) post-insemination and left in place for 5 days. Control cows did not receive any treatment. Blood samples were collected for progesterone analysis from all cows once daily for 4 days starting on the day of estrus (d 0) and once every 3 days thereafter until d 22. Progesterone treatment by day interaction accounted for higher plasma P4 in treated than non-treated control cows. Progesterone concentrations differed significantly (p<0.05) during metestrus (d 2 to d 7) but not during diestrus (d 7 to d 12). $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ treatment, lactation number, service number or their interactions did not affect progesterone concentrations and pregnancy rates. Therefore, cows were grouped according to the day of P4 supplement irrespective of the $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ treatment. Progesterone supplement on d 7 but not d 2 significantly increased (p<0.03) pregnancy rates in repeat breeding cows with four or more previous services but not in cows in their third service. In conclusion, post-insemination P4 supplement to repeat breeding cows with four or more previous services improved pregnancy rates and should be advocated when no specific reason for infertility is diagnosed. Further studies with larger numbers of repeat breeding cows under field conditions are needed to ascertain the findings of this study.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.29-32
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• 2013

Objective: To investigate the influence of laparoscopic surgery on the natural conception rate in infertile women with endometriosis during the first year after the operation. Methods: We retrospectively studied 43 infertile women with surgically proven endometriosis. The natural conception rate was investigated for the 12 months after the laparoscopy. Results: The overall pregnancy rate was 41.9% (18/43). 66.7% (12/18) and 94.4% (17/18) of the patients conceived within postoperative 3 months and 6 months, respectively. The spontaneous pregnancy rate was not associated with the severity of endometriosis or laparoscopic findings or the type of surgery. The pregnancy rate for stage IV was relatively low (20.0%) compared to stage I, II, and III (35.7%, 44.4%, and 53.3%, respectively), although it did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion: Conservative surgical treatment with laparoscopy and a prompt attempt at natural conception may be effective for infertile patients with endometriosis.