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Pseudo- Meigs' syndrome secondary to uterine leiomyoma is a rare entity. A 50-year-old Japanese woman presented with a 3-month history of shortness of breath. Chest X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging revealed massive right pleural effusion, ascites and a large subserosal uterine myoma. She underwent a total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. The pathology was consistent with a benign leiomyoma. The ascites and pleural effusion rapidly disappeared postoperatively. The serum interleukin-6 level was 3.9 pg/mL before surgery and declined to 1.6 pg/mL postoperatively. Previous published work has demonstrated that vascular endothelial growth factor and interleukin-6 may play a role in the pathogenesis of Meigs' syndrome and that vascular endothelial growth factor may contribute to the development of pseudo- Meigs' syndrome due to metastatic ovarian cancer. This is the first English-language study showing the possibility that interleukin-6 is relevant to the pathogenesis of pseudo- Meigs' syndrome caused by degenerating uterine leiomyoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To examine the relationship between preterm birth and socioeconomic factors, past history, cervical length, cervical interleukin-8, bacterial vaginosis, underlying diseases, use of medication, employment status, sex of the fetus and multiple pregnancy. Methods In a multicenter, prospective, observational study, 1810 Japanese women registering their future delivery were enrolled at 8+0 to 12+6 weeks of gestation. Data on cervical length and delivery were obtained from 1365 pregnant women. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed. Results Short cervical length, steroid use, multiple pregnancy and male fetus were risk factors for preterm birth before 34 weeks of gestation. Multiple pregnancy, low educational level, short cervical length and part-timer were risk factors for preterm birth before 37 weeks of gestation. Conclusion Multiple pregnancy and cervical shortening at 20-24 weeks of gestation was a stronger risk factor for preterm birth. Any pregnant woman being part-time employee or low educational level, having a male fetus and requiring steroid treatment should be watched for the development of preterm birth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ovarian thecoma is a relatively rare tumor which occurs before and after menopause. It is extremely rare that pregnancy is complicated with thecoma. Diagnosis of ovarian tumors during pregnancy is highly problematic due to difficulties in obtaining clinical manifestations, and treatment of these tumors poses an even greater challenge. Our patient was found to have estrogen-producing thecoma accompanied by accumulation of ascites in an early phase of pregnancy. The patient underwent abdominal surgery to remove the tumor on the 13th week of gestation. This resulted in disappearance of the ascites and a favorable clinical course. Diagnosis and treatment of ovarian thecoma occurring during pregnancy are discussed with relevant references. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]