Medical abortion is preferred from 4 to 9 weeks of gestation and in Australia, suction curettage is the most frequently used method of abortion as it is considered useful from 6 to 14 weeks of gestation.

Mifepristone is a synthetic anti-progesterone, which is found to be effective for abortion when combined with misoprostol. There are evidences which suggest the effectiveness of misoprostol and mifepristone in both first and second trimesters. It is most commonly administered as a single dose of mifepristone followed by misoprostol, a prostaglandin, given orally or vaginally two days later. Prostaglandin can be repeated at an interval of 4 hours if required.
As the vaginal use shows only few gastrointestinal side effects Misoprostol is more effective and better tolerated vaginally than orally. Misoprostol is not approved for its use in termination of pregnancy, but is available in the market due to its indications in other conditions.
Methotrexate can be used orally or as an intramuscular injection followed by misoprostol up to seven days later, but this also is not a preferred method for termination of pregnancy in Australia.

The aim of pre-pregnancy counselling is to achieve the best possible glycaemic control before pregnancy and to educate diabetic women about the implications of pregnancy. Patient information leaflets about pregnancy should make clear the risks of pregnancy in diabetes, and include advice to take high dose (5 mg) folic acid pre-conception and for the first 12 weeks.

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have a 2.7-fold increased risk for developing endometrial cancer. A major factor for this increased malignancy risk is prolonged exposure of the endometrium to unopposed oestrogen that results from anovulation.

Additionally, secretory endometrium of some women with PCOS undergoing ovulation induction or receiving exogenous progestin exhibits progesterone resistance accompanied by dysregulation of gene expression controlling steroid action and cell proliferation.

Other risk factors include nulliparity, early menarche and late menopause, obesity and family history of endometrial cancer. Which rules out all the other options.

Following an abortion or miscarriage, combined oral contraceptive pills should be started immediately.

Girls with Turner’s syndrome (45,X) are not at risk for malignancy. Patients with feminizing testicular syndrome with XY chromosome composition and patients with mixed gonadal dysgenesis are at risk for malignancy, and bilateral gonadectomy is performed.

The perineal membrane is a tough fascial sheet that attaches to the sides of the urogenital triangle. it forms the inferior border of the deep pouch which lies between this and the levator ani and the superior border of the superficial pouch.

This patients bloods and symptoms suggest she has hepatic impairment. Acute fatty liver of pregnancy typically presents after the 30th week. The usual symptoms in the mother are non-specific including nausea, vomiting, anorexia (or lack of desire to eat) and abdominal pain; excessive thirst may be the earliest symptom without overlap with otherwise considered normal pregnancy symptoms; however, jaundice and fever may occur in as many as 70% of patients.

Many laboratory abnormalities are seen in acute fatty liver of pregnancy. Liver enzymes are elevated, with the AST and ALT enzymes ranging from minimal elevation to 1000 IU/L, but usually staying in the 300-500 range. Bilirubin is almost universally elevated. Alkaline phosphatase is often elevated in pregnancy due to production from the placenta, but may be additionally elevated. Other abnormalities may include an elevated white blood cell count, hypoglycemia, elevated coagulation parameters, including the international normalized ratio, and decreased fibrinogen. There may be increases of ammonia, uric acid aswell.

Recent studies have shown that being a primigravida, multiple pregnancies, carrying a male fetus, other liver diseases during pregnancy, previous history of AFLP, and pre-eclampsia are the potential risk factors for AFLP

Congenital Herpes Simplex Virus infection may cause high levels of morbidity and mortality in neonates. Risk of infection with HSV 1 and 2 is highest within 6 weeks of delivery and is transferred to the neonate via maternal secretions at birth. Affected babies can present as skin manifestations, CNS infection, or disseminated infection, which carries an 85% risk of mortality if left untreated. Treatment with high dose antivirals such as acyclovir can help decrease the case mortality rate to 30% in cases of disseminated infection.

Pruritus of pregnancy is a common disorder, which occurs in 1 in 300 pregnancies, and presents as excoriated papules on extensor limbs, abdomen
and shoulders. It is more common in women with a history of atopy. Prurigo usually starts at around 25–30 weeks of pregnancy and resolves after delivery,
with no effect on the mother or baby. Treatment is symptomatic with topical steroids and emollients. It occurs due to derangement in the LFTs. ALP can rise to up to 3 times the normal non-pregnant value in the 3rd trimester.
All of the other tests above typically decrease during pregnancy.

Puerperal psychosis seems to be mainly hereditary and closely associated with bipolar disorder especially the manic type, rather than being a distinct condition with a group of classical symptoms or course. Postpartum psychoses typically have an abrupt onset within 2 weeks of delivery and may have rapid progression of symptoms. Fortunately, it is generally a brief condition and responds well to prompt management. If the condition is threatening the mother and/or baby’s safety, hospital admission is warranted. A patient can present with a wide variety of psychotic symptoms ranging from delusion, passivity phenomenon, catatonia, and hallucinations. While depression and mania may be the predominating features, it is not surprising to see symptoms such as confusion and stupor. Although the rate of incidence is about 1 in 1000 pregnancies, it is seen in about 20% of women who previously had bipolar episodes prior to pregnancy. It has not been shown to be linked with factors such as twin pregnancies, stillbirth, breastfeeding or being a single parent. However, it might be more commonly seen in women who are first-time mothers and pregnancy terminations.

The risk of recurrence is 20%. Unfortunately, there is no specific treatment guideline but organic causes should first be ruled out. First generation/typical anti-psychotics are often associated with extrapyramidal symptoms. Nowadays, atypical antipsychotics such as risperidone or olanzapine can be used along with lithium which is a mood stabiliser. As of now, there hasn’t been any significant side effects as a result of second generation antipsychotic use in pregnancy. While women are usually advised to stop breast-feeding, it might be unnecessary except if the mother is being treated with lithium which has been reported to cause side effects on the infants in a few instances. ECT is considered to be highly efficacious for all types of postpartum psychosis and may be necessary if the mother’s condition is life-threatening to herself or/and the baby. If untreated, puerperal psychosis might persist for 6 months or even longer.

The options of saying ‘in view of her age and previous problem, further pregnancies are out of the question’ and so is ‘By all means start another pregnancy and see how she feels about it. If she has misgivings, then have the pregnancy terminated.’ are inappropriate.

As mentioned earlier, considering there is a 20% chance of recurrence it is not correct to say that since she had good outcomes with her first pregnancy, the risk of recurrence is minimal.

Anti-psychotics are not recommended to be used routinely both during pregnancy and lactation due to the absence of long-term research on children with intrauterine and breastmilk exposure to the drugs. Hence it is not right to conclude that ‘if she gets pregnant then she should take prophylactic antipsychotics throughout the pregnancy’ as it contradicts current guidelines. Each case should be individualised and the risks compared with the benefits to decide whether anti-psychotics should be given during pregnancy. It is important to obtain informed consent from both the mother and partner with documentation.

Should the mother deteriorates during the pregnancy that she no longer is capable of making decisions about treatment, then an application for temporary guardianship should be carried out to ensure that she can be continued on the appropriate treatment.

Osteogenesis imperfect is an autosomal dominant condition. All the rest of the options are autosomal recessive conditions.

Pregnancy is considered as a hypercoagulable state with an increased risk for the development of conditions like deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). Among these two PE is the considered the most significant cause for maternal death in Australia.
A pregnant women with venous thromboembolism should be treated with heparin as warfarin is contraindicated. Warfarin should be avoided throughout pregnancy and especially during the first and third trimesters of pregnancy as it crosses the placenta. Intake of warfarin at 6-12 weeks of pregnancy can results in fetal warfarin syndrome which is characterised by:
– A characteristic nasal hypoplasia
– Short fingers with hypoplastic nails
– Calcified epiphyses, namely chondrodysplasia punctuta which is evident by stippling of epiphyses on X-ray.
– Intellectual disability
– Low birth weight
Recent studies show that the risk of fetal warfarin syndrome is around 5 % more in babies of women who require warfarin throughout pregnancy and the risk is always dose dependent.
Later exposure to warfarin, as in after 12 weeks, is mostly associated with central nervous system anomalies like microcephaly, hydrocephalus, agenesis of corpus callosum, Dandy-Walker malformation which is characterised by complete absence of cerebellar vermis along with enlarged fourth ventricle and mental retardation. Eye anomalies such as optic atrophy, microphthalmia, and Peter anomaly which is the dysgenesis of the anterior segment are also found in association. Newborns exposed to warfarin in all three trimesters are prone to present with blindness. Other complications found in neonates exposed to warfarin are perinatal intracranial hemorrhage and other major bleeding episodes.

Warfarin is not secreted into the breast milk and is so safe to use during the postpartum period.

The perineal membrane (also known as the inferior fascia of the urogenital diaphragm) separates the deep and superficial perineal pouches i.e. it is the inferior border of the deep pouch and superior border of the superficial pouch. The deep perineal pouch is the space therefore between superior and inferior layers of the urogenital diaphragm The superior fascia of the urogenital diaphragm is the superior border

Second-trimester ultrasound markers have low sensitivity and specificity for detecting Down syndrome, especially in a low-risk population.

The highest detection rate is acquired with ultrasound markers combined with gross anomalies. Although the detection rate with this combination of markers is high in a high-risk population (50 to 75 percent), false-positive rates are also high (22 percent for a 100 percent Down syndrome detection rate).

Continuous CTG produces a paper recording of the baby’s heart rate and the mother’s labour contractions. Although continuous CTG provides a written record, mothers cannot move freely during labour, change positions easily, or use a birthing pool to help with comfort and control during labour. It also means that some resources tend to be focused on the need to constantly interpret the CTG and not on the needs of a woman in labour.

Continuous CTG was associated with fewer fits for babies although there was no difference in cerebral palsy; both were rare events. However, continuous CTG was also associated with increased numbers of caesarean sections and instrumental births, both of which carry risks for mothers. Continuous CTG also makes moving and changing positions difficult in labour and women are unable to use a birthing pool. This can impact on women’s coping strategies. Women and their doctors need to discuss the woman’s individual needs and wishes about monitoring the baby’s wellbeing in labour.

Future research should focus on events that happen in pregnancy and labour that could be the cause of long term problems for the baby.

Absolute contraindications to OCs include breast cancer, history of deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism, active liver disease, use of rifampicin, familial hyperlipidaemia, previous arterial thrombosis, and pregnancy, while relative contraindications include smoking, age over 35, hypertension, breastfeeding, and irregular spontaneous menstruation.

Prolactin levels rise steadily during pregnancy during which time it promotes mammary growth (along with the other hormones mentioned below). Oestrogen and progesterone inhibit lactogenesis and it is only with the loss of these placental steroid hormones at term that Prolactin exhibits its lactogenic effect.

Detrusor overactivity can be treated with anti-cholinergic agents such as oxybutynin or tolterodine, solifenacin, fesoterodine and darifenacin. They are used as first line agents. Imipramine is used for enuresis and desmopressin is used for nocturia.
NICE pathway

Prior to initiating anticholinergics:
Bladder training
Consider treating vaginal atrophy and nocturia with topical oestrogen and desmopressin respectively before commencing treatments below.
Consider catheterisation if chronic retention
1st line treatments:
1. Oxybutynin (immediate release) – Do not offer to frail elderly patients
2. Tolterodine (immediate release)
3. Darifenacin (once daily preparation)
DO NOT offer any of the 3 drugs below:
1. Flavoxate
2. Propantheline
3. Imipramine
2nd line treatment
Consider transdermal anticholinergic (antimuscarinic)
Mirabegron
Adjuvant Treatments
Desmopressin can be considered for those with nocturia
Duloxetine may be considered for those who don’t want/unsuitable for surgical treatment
Intravaginal oestrogen can be offered to postmenopausal women with OAB

Presentation in the given case is classic for premature rupture of membranes (PROM) which was probably caused due to trauma during intercourse.
Premature rupture of membrane (PROM) is defined as the rupture of embryonic membranes before the onset of labor, regardless of the age of pregnancy. If occured before 37 weeks of gestation, it is termed as preterm PROM (PPROM.)

A sudden gush of watery fluid per vagina is the classic presentation of rupture of the membranes (ROM), regardless of gestational age, however nowadays many women presents with continuous or intermittent leakage of fluid or a sensation of wetness within the vagina or on the perineum. Presence of liquor flowing from the cervical os or its pooling in the posterior vaginal fornix are considered as the pathognomonic symptom of ROM. Assessment of fetal well-being, the position of the fetus, placental location, estimated fetal weight and presence of any anomalies in PROM and PPROM are done with ultrasonographic studies.

Retained semen will not result in the findings mentioned in this clinical scenario as it have a different appearance.

Infections will not be a cause for this presentation as it will be associated with characteristic features like purulent cervical discharge, malodorous vaginal discharge, etc. Pooling of clear fluid in the posterior fornix is pathognomonic for ROM.

Urine leakage is common during the pregnancy, but it is not similar to the clinical scenario mentioned above.

Absence of findings like cervical dilation and bulging membranes on speculum exam makes cervical insufficiency an unlikely diagnosis in this case.

Prelabour Rupture of Membranes:
– Risk of serious neonatal infection 1% (vs 0.5% for women with intact membranes)
– 60% of patients with PROM will go into labour within 24 hrs
– Induction appropriate if >34 weeks gestation and >24 hours post rupture and patients labour hasn’t started.
– If <34 weeks induction of labour should not be carried out unless there are additional obstetric indications e.g. infection