Top in women’s health: Maternal cannabis use; risks of NSAIDs plus hormonal contraceptives

A recent study found that maternal cannabis use was linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes related to placental function.

In particular, ongoing use of cannabis during pregnancy was associated with slow fetal growth, preterm birth, stillbirth and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, according to researchers. It was the top story in women’s health last week.

In another top story, researchers found that NSAID use significantly increased the risk for venous thromboembolism among women using hormonal contraception.

“Considering the highly prevalent indications for use of hormonal contraception and of NSAIDs, studying this association further would be of public interest, especially in regular users of NSAIDs, who might benefit from a low/no risk hormonal contraceptive rather than a high/medium risk hormonal contraceptive,” Amani Meaidi, MD, a physician and postdoctoral researcher in the department of gynecology and the department of clinical medicine at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, and colleagues wrote in The BMJ.

Read these and more top stories in women’s health below:

Maternal cannabis use linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes related to placental function

Maternal cannabis use was associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including small for gestational age, preterm birth, stillbirth and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, researchers reported in JAMA. Read more.

NSAID use compounds venous thromboembolic risk with high-risk hormonal contraception

Use of NSAIDs significantly increased the risk for venous thromboembolism when used concomitantly with hormonal contraception already associated with medium/high risk vs. low/no-risk, according to study results published in The BMJ. Read more.

Q&A: US cervical cancer screening, treatment, at-home HPV tests

Vaccination against HPV and routine screening are the primary methods for cervical cancer prevention, and the convenience of at-home HPV tests may increase screening and lower cervical cancer prevalence in the U.S. Read more.

Contralateral breast cancer risk higher for women aged 35 years or younger

Women aged 35 years or younger with breast cancer had a higher risk for developing contralateral breast cancer compared with women older than 35 years, according to cohort study results published in JAMA Network Open. Read more.

E-cigarette use does not raise risk for small neonates among pregnant teens

Among adolescents, e-cigarette use during late pregnancy was not statistically significantly associated with an increased small for gestational age birth risk, but cigarette use was, researchers reported in JAMA Network Open. Read more.