The contribution of Prenatal Psychology to our understanding about prenatal dynamics and fetal behaviour

Research in the prenatal human experience has very clearly shown that whatever mother experiences all her life until conception and even more impact fully during conception and pregnancy passes down to the child she is pregnant with. Modern Biology has shown that environmental information and the perception that governs this environment gets encoded in the cell consciousness. A simple thought or act can upset or stabilize the whole planet or... fetal existence. Subtle differences in the motivation of our choices may have the power to bring about radically different conditions in the process of events. A simple thought of fear can lead to a trauma, a disease, a holocaust while a simple thought of compassion can take humanity out of the platonic cave into the healing light of creation. Is there anything we can do? Can we learn from what we already know about prenatal dynamics and move on to design and implement salutogenic processes for the benefit of all involved? The paper will attempt to show the most important findings about prenatal dynamics and fetal existence and how they are connected with our postnatal health and wellbeing from the times of Freud and especially his students who took psychoanalysis from the childhood to birth experience and then to pregnancy and conception and beyond

A youth-led congress on children's mental health: voices, experiences, and policy implications

This report synthesizes the proceedings of a youth-led congress focused on the profound impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's mental health. The congress provided a platform for children to articulate their experiences, express concerns, and propose recommendations. The findings underscore the need for policymakers to heed the voices of children in shaping mental health policies and support systems.peer-reviewe

Guinea pig fetus does not change its presentation during second half of gestation

Objectives: The aims of this paper are: 1. To investigate spontaneous changes in fetal presentation during the second half of gestation in guinea pig fetus, 2. to observe provoked changes of fetal presentation, by passive positioning fetus into an upside-down position and “sitting” position. Eight fetuses from singleton pregnancies were included. Experimental design: Ultrasound examinations (Toshiba Nemio SSA-550A apparatus) were started on the 26th day of gestation (GD). Each fetus was examined 2-3 times in each 5-day interval until the end of gestation. First the spontaneous orientation of fetus was determined by tracking along the longitudinal and transversal axes of the fetus with the ultrasound probe. Then the fetus was brought into a head-down position relative to gravity for 5 minutes. The examination was repeated with the fetus in the head-up position. Results: In the period from the 26th – 30th GD in 7 of 21 observations spontaneous changes of presentation were observed. From the 31st GD all 133 observations were negative regarding spontaneous changes of presentation and situs. The chi-squared test showed that difference in spontaneous changes of presentation and situs before versus after 30th day of gestation had a statistical significance (χ² = 25.16 p 0.05). Fetuses were brought into a head-down and head-up 154 times. In none of these attempts did a fetus change presentation during the five minutes of observation. Conclusion: Guinea pig fetuses do not spontaneously or at provocation change presentation after 30th GD

Childlessness : concept analysis

The purpose of this concept analysis is to explore childlessness and provide understanding to professionals involved in the field of infertility. Walker and Avant’s method was used to identify descriptions, antecedents, consequences, and empirical referents of the concept. A model with related and contrary cases was developed. The analysis was based on the definition of the term in major dictionaries in the Greek, Lithuanian, Finnish, Maltese, and Turkish languages, while further literature searches utilized the Web of Science, PubMed, PsychInfo, Medline, Google Scholar, and National Thesis Databases. The literature search was limited to papers/books published in the authors’ national languages and English. As a result, childlessness is defined as the absence of children in the life of an individual, and this can be voluntary or involuntary. However, the deeper analysis of the concept may be preceded and amplified through cultural, psychological, biological, philosophical, theological, sociological, anthropological, and linguistic aspects throughout history. These elements presented challenges for childless individuals, ultimately influencing their choices to resort to alternative ways of becoming parents, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), surrogacy, adoption, or other forms of childbearing. Historically, childlessness has been viewed with negative connotations due to its potential impact on the survival of the human species. This negativity can be directed even to individuals who may decide to opt to voluntarily remain childfree. The long-term impact of the experience, both on an individual and collective level, continues to cause pain to those who are involuntarily childless. In conclusion, health professionals and other stakeholders who have a deep understanding of childlessness, including the antecedents and attributes, can minimize the potential negative consequences of those factors contributing to childlessness, whether voluntary or involuntary. In fact, they can capitalize on a powerful impact of change adaptation by providing support to those in their practice to recover the lost homeostasis.peer-reviewe

Changing birthplaces to care for healthcare workers, lessons from the pandemic : a scoping review

Background: Together with women giving birth, healthcare professionals involved in perinatal care faced significant challenges due to Covid-19 restrictions. The birth environment has been affected, influencing the quality and nature of interactions between care providers, women, and their families as well as the quality of care provided to women.Aim: To identify, categorize and reflect on the most relevant aspects of the experience of healthcare workers, especially obstetricians and gynecologists, involved in the peripartum period, after the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic up till now.Methods: A scoping review was conducted. After conducting a literature search using a variety of online data- bases, 22 articles were included, and the main/recurrent themes were identified.Results: The following main themes were described: fear of the virus, changes in the way care is provided, increase in the workload, mental health, psychological distress, support strategies, university education, and perspectives of health managers.Discussion: Standard maternity departments appeared not appropriate to face the pandemic. Psychological distress on perinatal healthcare workers’, the majority of whom were women, led to the impairment of their mental health, affecting the quality of care provided to women. A key role was played by healthcare managers support in shaping how doctors can cope and recover, and in reducing the mental health impact.Conclusion: It is very important to address some of the most relevant issues to acknowledge the role of healthcare workers and improve the health systems organization to face future pandemics.peer-reviewe

Fifth European Dirofilaria and Angiostrongylus Days (FiEDAD) 2016

Peer reviewe

Dissemination and Enrichment of Knowledge About Normal Birth to Bring About a Change to Society

The birth of a child is a pivotal time in the life of a mother, her family and society. The health and well-being of a mother and child at birth largely determines the future health and wellness of the entire family (World Health Organization (WHO), 2005). Normal birth has enormous benefits for mothers, neonates, families, and societies. The growing supportive evidence for the promotion of normal birth certainly relies on multidisciplinary collaborations to continue spreading knowledge about the advantages of normal birth and enhancing the understanding of how knowledge about normal birth can change society. Knowledge about normal birth varies among different groups of healthcare professionals, and it would be useful to identify how it is clinically translated to become accessible to other professionals and research teams, consumers, the public, significant decision- or policy makers, the industry, funding bodies, and volunteer health teams

Agroindustrial Wastewater Treatment with Simultaneous Biodiesel Production in Attached Growth Systems Using a Mixed Microbial Culture

The use of cyanobacteria in biological wastewater treatment technologies can greatly reduce operation costs by combining wastewater bioremediation and production of lipid suitable as biodiesel feedstock. In this work, an attached growth system was employed to achieve the above-mentioned dual objective using a mixed microbial culture dominated by Leptolyngbya and Limnothrix species in diverse heterotrophic consortia. Kinetic experiments on different initial pollutant concentrations were carried out to determine the ability of the established culture to remove organic load (expressed by d-COD, dissolved-Chemical Oxygen Demand), N and P from agroindustrial wastewaters (dairy, winery and raisin). Biomass and oil productivity were determined. It was found that significant removal rates of nutrients were achieved in all the wastewaters examined, especially in that originated from winery in which the highest d-COD removal rate (up to 97.4%) was observed. The attached microbial biomass produced in winery wastewater contained 23.2% lipid/biomass, wt/wt, which was satisfying. The growth in the dairy wastewater yielded the highest attached biomass productivity (5.03 g m−2 day−1) followed by the mixed effluent of winery-raisin (4.12 g m−2 day−1) and the winery wastewater (3.08 g m−2 day−1). The produced microbial lipids contained high percentages of saturated and mono-unsaturated fatty acids (over 89% in total lipids) in all substrates examined. We conclude that the proposed attached growth photobioreactor system can be considered an effective wastewater treatment system that simultaneously produces microbial lipids suitable as biodiesel feedstock

A qualitative review of migrant women's perceptions of their needs and experiences related to pregnancy and childbirth

Aim : A synthesis of the evidence of migrant women's perceptions of their needs and experiences in relation to pregnancy and childbirth. Background : Despite the fact that all European Union member states have ratified human rights-based resolutions aimed at non-discrimination, there is a relationship between social inequality and access to pre-, intra-, and postpartum care. Design : A qualitative systematic review of studies from European countries. Data sources : A search was made for relevant articles published between January 1996–June 2010. Review methods : Data were analysed by means of thematic synthesis. Results : Sixteen articles were selected, analysed, and synthesized. One overall theme; ‘Preserving one's integrity in the new country’ revealed two key aspects; ‘Struggling to find meaning’ and ‘Caring relationships’. ‘Struggling to find meaning’ comprised four sub-themes; ‘Communication and connection’, ‘Striving to cope and manage’, ‘Struggling to achieve a safe pregnancy and childbirth’, and ‘Maintaining bodily integrity’. ‘Caring relationships’ was based on the following three sub-themes: ‘Sources of strength’, ‘Organizational barriers to maternity care’, and ‘The nature and quality of caring relationships’. Conclusion : The results of this review demonstrate that migrant women are in a vulnerable situation when pregnant and giving birth and that their access to health services must be improved to better meet their needs. Research is required to develop continuity of care and improve integrated maternal care