Browsing by Author "Lamont, Ronald"

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    Low circulating maternal adiponectin in patients with pyelonephritis: adiponectin at the crossroads of pregnancy and infection
    (2010) Mazaki-Tovi, Shali; Romero, Roberto; Vaisbuch, Edi; Chaiworapongsa, Tinnakorn; Erez, Offer; Mittal, Pooja; Kwon Kim, Sun; Gotsch, Francesca; Lamont, Ronald; Ogge, Giovanna; Pacora, Percy; Goncalves, Luis; Jai Kim, Chong; Gómez Mora, Ricardo Alberto; Espinoza, Jimmy; Hassan, Sonia S.; Kusanovic, Juan Pedro
    Objective: An emerging theme in modern biology is that adipose tissue can respond to metabolic stress, and to inflammatory stimuli, by regulating the secretion of a complex network of soluble mediators, termed adipokines. Adiponectin, the most prevalent circulating adipokine in human, has profound insulin-sensitizing and anti-inflammatory properties. Indeed, the notion that adiponectin plays an important role in the interactions between the metabolic and the immune systems has been strongly suggested. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine if pyelonephritis during pregnancy is associated with changes in maternal serum adiponectin concentrations. Study design: This cross-sectional study included women in the following groups: 1) normal pregnant women (ns200); and 2) pregnant women with pyelonephritis (ns50). Maternal plasma adiponectin concentrations were determined by ELISA. Non-parametric statistics were used for analyses. Results: 1) The median maternal plasma adiponectin concentration was lower in patients with pyelonephritis than in those with a normal pregnancy (P-0.001); 2) among pregnant women with a normal weight, patients with pyelonephritis had a lower median plasma adiponectin concentration than those with a normal pregnancy (P-0.001); 3) similarly, among overweight/obese patients, those with pyelonephritis had a lower median plasma adiponectin concentration than those with a normal pregnancy (P-0.001); and 4) the presence of pyelonephritis was independently associated with maternal plasma adiponectin concentrations after adjustment for maternal age, smoking, gestational age at sampling, and pregestational body mass index (BMI). Conclusion: 1) The findings that acute pyelonephritis in pregnancy is characterized by low maternal plasma concentrations of adiponectin in both lean and overweight/obese patients are novel and concur with the antiinflammatory properties of adiponectin; and 2) the results of this study support the notion that adiponectin may play a role in the intricate interface between inflammation and metabolism during pregnancy
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    The clinical significance of eosinophils in the amniotic fluid in preterm labor
    (TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2010) Romero, Roberto; Kusanovic, Juan Pedro; Gomez, Ricardo; Lamont, Ronald; Bytautiene, Egle; Garfield, Robert E.; Mittal, Pooja; Hassan, Sonia S.; Yeo, Lami
    Methods. This retrospective case-control study included women who presented with preterm labor and intact membranes between 24 and 34 weeks of gestation. Patients underwent an amniocentesis shortly after admission for the assessment of the microbiologic status of the amniotic cavity and/or fetal lung maturity. Amniotic fluid was cultured for aerobic and anaerobic bacteria as well as genital mycoplasmas. Cytologic studies included amniotic fluid white blood cell count and differential, which was performed on cytocentrifuged specimens. Patients with microbial invasion of the amniotic cavity and/or an amniotic fluid white blood cell count > 20 cells/mm 20% of eosinophils. Controls were selected among women with an amniotic fluid eosinophil count < 20% and matched for gestational age at amniocentesis. The analysis was conducted with non-parametric statistics.