Background: Fetal weight estimation (FWE) is an important factor for clinical management decisions, especially in imminent preterm birth at the limit of viability between 23^0/7 and 26^0/7 weeks of gestation. It is crucial to detect and eliminate factors that have a negative impact on the accuracy of FWE. Data Sources: In this systematic literature review, we investigated 14 factors that may influence the accuracy of FWE, in particular in preterm neonates born at the limit of viability. Results: We found that gestational age, maternal body mass index, amniotic fluid index and ruptured membranes, presentation of the fetus, location of the placenta and the presence of multiple fetuses do not seem to have an impact on FWE accuracy. The influence of the examiner's grade of experience and that of fetal gender were discussed controversially. Fetal weight, time interval between estimation and delivery and the use of different formulas seem to have an evident effect on FWE accuracy. No results were obtained on the impact of active labor. Discussion: This review reveals that only few studies investigated factors possibly influencing the accuracy of FWE in preterm neonates at the limit of viability. Further research in this specific age group on potential confounding factors is needed.

Purpose: Peripartum hemorrhage (PPH) remains one of the main causes of maternal mortality worldwide. Treatment includes administration of packed red blood cells (RBC) in severe cases and patient blood management (PBM) may reduce it significantly. In our study, we wanted to retrospectively assess red blood cell administration in PPH to evaluate the impact of PBM in Switzerland. Methods: Using data from the Swiss obstetric hospital registry (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Schweizer Frauenkliniken, ASF), we included patients with deliveries from 1998 to 2016. We examined available obstetric data as well as blood loss and RBC administration in the acute and subacute peripartal phase. We categorized data into two time intervals: 1998–2011 and 2012–2016, as new PPH guidelines in Switzerland were established in 2012. Results: PPH incidence increased between 1998 and 2016 significantly. The number of vaginal instrumental deliveries and cesarean sections increased as well. Administration of three or more RBC units, as defined in the ASF registry, in the acute and subacute phase in Switzerland has decreased after 2012. Conversely, we saw an increase in the administration of one to two RBC units in the acute and subacute phase. Nevertheless, overall RBC administration has been decreasing from 1998 to 2016. Conclusion: The increase of patients obtaining one or two units of RBC for PPH suggests that there may be a potential for effective implication of PBM in obstetrics. Reduction of RBC transfusion in the context of PPH may not only decrease maternal morbidity, but decrease economic costs as well.

Aim: Breastfeeding has numerous advantages. Our aim was to investigate whether breastfeeding initiation and duration in women with pregnancies conceived through in vitro fertilisation differ from spontaneously conceived pregnancies.Methods: This is a comparative cross‐sectional study about breastfeeding behaviour performed at the Bern University Hospital including mothers of singletons conceived by in vitro fertilisation (n = 198) with or without gonadotropin stimulation between 2010 and 2016 (in vitro fertilisation group). They were compared to a population‐based control group (n = 1421) of a randomly selected sample of mothers in Switzerland who delivered in 2014.Results: A total of 1619 women were included in this analysis. Breastfeeding initiation rates were high, similar between the in vitro fertilisation group (93.4%) and the control group (94.8%). No increased risk of stopping breastfeeding earlier after in vitro fertilisation treatment compared to the control group could be found over the observational period of 12 months (HR = 1.00, 95% CI 0.83‐1.20, P = .984). There was no difference in breastfeeding initiation or duration after gonadotropin‐stimulated vs unstimulated in vitro fertilisation.Conclusion: In Switzerland, in vitro fertilisation treatments were not associated with earlier breastfeeding cessation. This result is reassuring for mothers undergoing in vitro fertilisation.