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G S Berkowitz

Publications and source records attributed to G S Berkowitz.

64 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

Oral contraceptive use and fibrocystic breast disease among pre- and postmenopausal women.

The association between use of oral contraceptives and fibrocystic breast disease was assessed among women aged 20-74 years in a hospital-based case-control study conducted between November 1979 and November 1981 in Connecticut. The study groups comprised 633 women with biopsy-proven fibrocystic breast disease and 1,062 controls who had been admitted, as inpatients or outpatients, to general surgical services. For the premenopausal women, there was no evidence that long-term use of oral contraceptives was associated with a decreased frequency of fibrocystic breast disease among either current or past users. For the postmenopausal women, previous oral contraceptive exposure was associated with an increased occurrence of cystic disease. These findings contradict previous investigations reporting a negative association between oral contraceptive use and the development of fibrocystic breast disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Caffeine consumption and fibrocystic breast disease: a case-control epidemiologic study.

In a hospital-based case-control study that included 634 women with fibrocystic breast disease and 1,066 comparison women in Connecticut, the occurrence of fibrocystic breast disease was positively associated with average daily consumption of caffeine. Women who consumed 31-250 mg of caffeine/day had a 1.5-fold increase in the odds of disease, whereas women who drank over 500 mg/day had a 2.3-fold increase in the odds. The association with caffeine consumption was especially high among women with atypical lobular hyperplasia and with sclerosing adenosis with concomitant papillomatosis or papillary hyperplasia, both of which have been associated with an increased breast cancer risk. The association was specific to fibrocystic breast disease in that there was no association of caffeine consumption with fibroadenoma or other forms of benign breast disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The role of psychosocial factors in spontaneous preterm delivery.

Exposure to life events during pregnancy and attitudinal expression of pregnancy desirability and partner support were assessed for 166 mothers of singleton preterm infants and 299 mothers of singleton term infants. White women with a preterm delivery reported a higher number of life events and expressed a more negative attitude toward the pregnancy than white women with a term delivery. No substantial differences in these variables were evident among the black women. However, when level of life events was stratified by pregnancy desirability score, both white and black women with a high pregnancy desirability score were found to be at an increased risk for a preterm delivery when exposed to a high as compared to a low level of life events.

Attitude↗
PubMed1983

Early gestational bleeding and pregnancy outcome: a multivariable analysis.

The effect of early vaginal bleeding on pregnancy outcome was assessed for 16 305 singleton stillborn and liveborn deliveries at three obstetric units in Jerusalem, Israel during 1975-1976. A total of 2385 women (14.6%) reported gestational bleeding before the seventh month of pregnancy. Of these, 2166 reported light bleeding (spotting), 191 heavy bleeding, and 28 both light and heavy bleeding. Logistic regression models revealed an unexpected interaction among light bleeding, hormone usage, and pregnancy outcome in that the risks of a low birth weight, pre-term and small-for-dates term delivery were significantly increased only for those women who had light bleeding and who had not used therapeutic hormones. Heavy vaginal bleeding, in contrast, was associated with an excess risk of these perinatal complications regardless of hormone usage. There was also a suggestion that certain subgroups of women with vaginal bleeding might be at an increased risk of delivering an offspring with congenital malformations.

Female↗
PubMed1983

Physical activity and the risk of spontaneous preterm delivery.

An epidemiologic case-control study exploring possible risk factors for preterm delivery was undertaken at Yale-New Haven Hospital during 1977. The study groups consisted of 175 mothers of singleton preterm infants and 313 mothers of singleton term infants. Analysis of questionnaire responses provided no evidence that employment, housework, child care and leisure-time physical activity during pregnancy increased the risk of preterm delivery. Women who participated in sports or physical fitness exercises during pregnancy were found to have a significantly decreased risk of preterm delivery as compared to those who were not similarly active; this finding suggests that certain forms of moderate physical activity may actually protect against preterm delivery.

Child Care↗
PubMed1982

Effects of cigarette smoking, alcohol, coffee and tea consumption on preterm delivery.

A case-control study of 175 mothers of singleton, preterm infants and 313 mothers of singleton, term infants was undertaken at Yale-New Haven Hospital during 1977 to explore possible risk factors of preterm delivery. Heavy alcohol consumption (an average of two or more drinks per day) during the pregnancy was associated with an approximately 3-fold risk of preterm delivery. Women who smoked 10 or more cigarettes per day were also at an increased risk of a preterm delivery, but the effect of cigarette smoking was less pronounced once confounding variables had been taken into account. No association was observed between coffee drinking and shortened gestations. Tea consumption, especially four or more cups of tea per day, was more frequent among women with a preterm as compared to a term infant, but no significant relation was evident between heavy tea consumption and preterm delivery after controlling for the effects of other risk factors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

An epidemiologic study of preterm delivery.

A case-control study of the epidemiology of preterm delivery was undertaken at Yale-New Haven Hospital in Connecticut during 1977. The study population consisted of 175 mothers of singleton preterm infants and 313 mothers of singleton term infants. Significant risk factors of a preterm delivery included low socioeconomic status; low pregravid weight; inadequate weight gain during the pregnancy; a previous preterm delivery; a history of infertility problems; an induced abortion terminating the previous pregnancy; vaginal spotting or light bleeding during the pregnancy; antepartum hemorrhage and abnormal placental implantation; lack of leisure-time physical activities during the pregnancy; alcohol consumption prior to the third trimester of pregnancy; and negative attitudinal expression toward the pregnancy.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Lack of effect of psychosocial stress on maternal corticotropin-releasing factor and catecholamine levels at 28 weeks' gestation.

OBJECTIVE: Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and catecholamines are among the major hormones activated during the adaptive response to stressful stimuli. In pregnant women, serum CRF and catecholamines levels increase during labor and preterm delivery. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether psychosocial stress measures are correlated with serum CRF or urinary catecholamine [ie, epinephrine, norepinephrine (NE), dopamine (DA)] levels in healthy midtrimester pregnant women. METHODS: A large group of white pregnant women (n = 382) participated in the present study. The Work Conditions Questionnaire and the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Interview were administered to measure job stress and general life stress, respectively. Urine and blood specimens were collected at 28 weeks of gestation at the time of psychosocial evaluation. Epinephrine, NE, and DA were quantified in the urine by a highly sensitive method based on an amperometric detector. Serum CRF and cortisol levels were measured in blood specimens by using specific radioimmunoassays. RESULTS: Serum CRF and cortisol levels did not vary between patients with high and low scores on psychological tests, and no correlation was found between CRF and cortisol levels. One job stress measure, low job latitude, was significantly associated with a mild increase in NE and DA levels in the afternoon and night (P < .05, analysis of variance). Serum cortisol levels were inversely correlated with NE in the morning (r = -0.447; P =.002) and night segments (r = -0.391; P = .007) and with DA in the night period (r = -0.367; P = .013). CONCLUSION: The absence of a significant relationship between CRF/cortisol and psychosocial stress measures in pregnant women suggests that the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal response to psychosocial stress may be masked at midtrimester by the constantly high levels of placental CRF, whose control is beyond the influence of environmental stressors.

Catecholamines↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Employment-related physical activity and pregnancy outcome.

Concern about possible adverse reproductive effects of employment reflects the increasing participation of pregnant women in the labor force. Although the literature on the effect of employment-related physical activity on pregnancy outcome is substantial, no general consensus has been reached. A growing number of studies, however, suggests that prolonged standing and long working hours may pose a risk to pregnancy. The provision of maternity benefits varies greatly between the United States and European countries. Current modifications of working conditions for both pregnant and non-pregnant women differ even among European countries.

Europe↗