Trak fertility tracker, a breakthrough in at home sperm count testing launched.

SandstoneDiagnostics, a company based at Livermore, CA has launched Trak, a revolutionary new approach to male fertility that helps men test, learn and try to improve their sperm count over time. 

Many couples simply delay fertility treatment because the male partner is not comfortable in getting a semen analysis in the laboratory. Well, Trak not only measures sperm count based on current world health organization (WHO) guidelines and clinical research, from the comfort and privacy of your home, but it also offers you advice to improve the reproductive health.

This easy to use, first FDA cleared Trak engine uses centrifugal separation technique to isolate and quantify sperm count. The results are displayed like a thermometer reading as Low, Moderate or Optimal for conception.

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The kit that is available on Amazon, costs 199 $ for four testing sets. It is mailed to your doorsteps in discrete package and each set includes a collection cup, a dropper, a stick that the company calls a prop, and two seals. Shop At Home Male Fertility Testing System by Trak

Simultaneously, set up the Trak app on your smart phone and have to feed in answers to simple life style questions. The app will give you a basic score and combined with the sperm test results, you get information to make changes in your life style to improve your low results.

Many other at home sperm count testing devices are available but the combination of centrifugal system and app to improve reproductive health gives it an edge over other devices. 

Here is a video about how the test works.

Media Courtesy: https://trakfertility.com

Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) issues guidelines for HCV in pregnancy

The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) has issued guidelines for screening and management of Hepatitis C infection in pregnancy.  

The guidelines were published ahead of print in American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

It is estimated that on average nearly 1-2.5% of pregnant women in US are infected with the virus and the risk of vertical transmission is 5%.

The recommendations are:

1) All women who are at increased risk for Hepatitis C should get tested for anti-HCV antibodies at their first prenatal visit. If the risk persists till later in pregnancy or new risk factor arise, the screening should be repeated again. (GRADE 1B)

According to American Liver Foundation the risk of Hepatitis C is increased if:

• Shared needles to inject drugs or straws to inhale them
• Had tattoos or body piercings in an unclean environment using unsterile equipment
• Worked in a place where you came in contact with infected blood or needles, for example, healthcare workers
• Received a blood transfusion or organ transplant before July 1992
• Received a blood product for clotting problems made before 1987
• Needed to have your blood filtered by a machine (hemodialysis) for a long period of time because your kidneys weren’t working
• Were born to a mother with HCV
• Had unprotected sex with multiple partners
• Have or had a sexually transmitted disease
• Have HIV

2) All HCV positive pregnant women should be screened for other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) including HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and hepatitis B virus (HBV). (GRADE 1B)

3) All patients with HCV, including pregnant women should be advised to refrain from consuming alcohol. (Best Practice)

4) Direct-acting antiviral medications (DAA) are not to be used in pregnancy, except in settings of clinical trials. The treatment should be initiated after the delivery of the patient in the postpartum period. (Grade 1C).

5) If invasive prenatal testing is requested than amniocentesis is preferred over chorionic villus sampling (CVS) because of limited data on the risk of vertical transmission for CVS over amniocentesis. (Grade 2C).

 6) HCV infection solely is not an indication for Cesarean section in absence of other obstetric indications. (GRADE 1B)

7) Internal fetal monitoring, prolonged rupture of membranes, and episiotomy should be avoided during labor in HCV+ women (Grade 1B).

8) Positive HCV status is not a contraindication for breast feeding. (Grade 1A).

Clinical review: Updates on Cesarean Section

Here is a roundup of the latest research on Cesarean Section.

In this article:

Subcuticular skin closure after cesarean delivery with poliglecaprone 25 suture IMONOCRYL) decreases the rate of cesarean wound complications by 39% as compared with polyglactin 910 suture (Coated VICRYL) says the result of randomized control trial published ahead of print in Journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.  https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/08/use-of-monocryl-for-subcutaneous-skin.html

A simple and inexpensive intervention of vaginal cleaning with an antiseptic solution before cesarean delivery brings down the rate of endometritis note the results of a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis published August 4 in Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/08/vaginal-cleaning-before-cesarean.html

Double layer closure of uterus during previous cesarean section results in thicker third-trimester lower uterine segment and decreases rate of uterine rupture by 3 to 5fold during trial of labor after cesarean (TOLAC) and vaginal birth after cesarean reports results of multicenter prospective cohort study published in July issue of Journal obstetrics and gynecology. https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/07/double-layer-vs-single-layer-uterine.html

Chlorhexidine-Alcohol is not superior to Povidone-Iodine in reducing the rate of surgical site infection in Cesarean section reports the results of Chlorhexidine-Alcohol Versus Povidone-Iodine for Cesarean Antisepsis (CAPICA) Trial published ahead of print in American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/06/what-is-best-for-cesarean-antisepsis.html

Novel Cesarean Section Scalpel that increases fetal safety during surgery unveiled.

https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/02/novel-cesarean-section-scalpel-that_6.html

A C-section rate of approximately 19 percent seems to be ideal for the health of both women and newborns.

https://obgynupdated.blogspot.com/2017/02/a-c-section-rate-of-approximately-19.html