National Taiwan University Hospital’s (NTUH) Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology yesterday introduced the “Nausicaa” uterine compression suture, a simple and effective alternative to a hysterectomy for women suffering from major postpartum hemorrhage (PPH).
Citing WHO statistics, department director Chen Shee-uan (陳思原) said that on average, one woman dies from giving birth every minute, or one dies of PPH every four minutes.
As more advanced drugs for stimulating uterine muscle contraction to help control PPH are being developed, the number of deaths from PPH caused by poor uterus contraction following childbirth has dropped, he said.
Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times
However, the increasing rate of Caesarean sections might also be causing PPH and other complications, Chen said.
PPH is defined by accumulative blood loss greater than 1,000ml, with signs or symptoms of hypovolemia within 24 hours after giving birth, attending physician Jessica Kang (康巧鈺) said.
Treatments include bimanual uterine compression, packing the uterus with sponges and sterile materials, and medication, she said, adding that a hysterectomy is performed to stop the bleeding in some cases.
Shih Jin-chung (施景中), an attending physician at the department, developed the “Nausicaa” technique several years ago and named it after Japanese film director Hayao Miyazaki’s animated film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, as the post-surgery uterine with sutures resembles the body of the fictitious giant worm “Ohm.”
The B-lynch suture and the square suture techniques are the two most commonly used compression suture techniques for treating PPH, Shih said.
The B-lynch suture is more difficult, with the thread sometimes breaking due to excessive tension, while the square suture sometimes leads to increased risk of intrauterine adhesion, he said.
The “Nausicaa” technique uses five to 10 threads for sutures and can serve as a simple and effective alternative to a hysterectomy, he added.
About 100 patients who had major PPH have received the “Nausicaa” uterine compression suture at the hospital, 97 percent of whom stopped bleeding after being treated, he said, adding that five of them became pregnant again and gave birth to another child.
Taiwanese can file complaints with the Tourism Administration to report travel agencies if their activities caused termination of a person’s citizenship, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday, after a podcaster highlighted a case in which a person’s citizenship was canceled for receiving a single-use Chinese passport to enter Russia. The council is aware of incidents in which people who signed up through Chinese travel agencies for tours of Russia were told they could obtain Russian visas and fast-track border clearance, Chiu told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Taipei. However, the travel agencies actually applied
New measures aimed at making Taiwan more attractive to foreign professionals came into effect this month, the National Development Council said yesterday. Among the changes, international students at Taiwanese universities would be able to work in Taiwan without a work permit in the two years after they graduate, explainer materials provided by the council said. In addition, foreign nationals who graduated from one of the world’s top 200 universities within the past five years can also apply for a two-year open work permit. Previously, those graduates would have needed to apply for a work permit using point-based criteria or have a Taiwanese company
The Shilin District Prosecutors’ Office yesterday indicted two Taiwanese and issued a wanted notice for Pete Liu (劉作虎), founder of Shenzhen-based smartphone manufacturer OnePlus Technology Co (萬普拉斯科技), for allegedly contravening the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) by poaching 70 engineers in Taiwan. Liu allegedly traveled to Taiwan at the end of 2014 and met with a Taiwanese man surnamed Lin (林) to discuss establishing a mobile software research and development (R&D) team in Taiwan, prosecutors said. Without approval from the government, Lin, following Liu’s instructions, recruited more than 70 software
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
RSS