International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Women returning to former conflict zones in Sri Lanka are being provided with maternal and newborn health kits by the United Nations, while other reproductive equipment is being provided to hospitals in the area.

Chinese herbal medicines and acupuncture used alongside IVF do not help a woman's chances of getting pregnant, according to experts.

No proof has been found by the British Fertility Society (BFS) that the complementary treatments can improve conception.

A new website launched by the Pregnancy Health Centre is aiming to help pregnant women by offering them information about pregnancy health, fertility health, and women's health.

Cecil Horwitz, owner of the Pregnancy Health website said: "The Pregnancy Health website gives women the opportunity to make informed decisions about how to manage their health."

Environmental tobacco smoke exposure (ETSE) among pregnant African-American women can be reduced by cognitive behavioural therapy, researchers have found.

As a result, this can improve birth outcomes and prevent very low birth weights.

Women trying to get pregnant through fertility management treatments such as IVF may find alternative remedies like Chinese herbal medicines and acupuncture beneficial.

This is according to NHS consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Michael Dooley who noted that these therapies can have a direct impact on the effect of more conventional medication.

The practice of removing the ovaries during hysterectomies - bilateral oophorectomy - may not be beneficial, in spite of the fact that it is common practice.

This is according to research published in The Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology and conducted by scientists at the John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California.

The types of food women eat during the early stages of pregnancy affect the gender of their child, according to new research.

Those who eat a full breakfast and a high fat diet at the time of conception are more likely to have a boy, scientists at the University of Missouri, US, claim.

A campaign has been launched by Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) Rwanda that hopes to reduce maternal mortality.

GCAP Rwanda has been praised by Egidia Rukundo, gender cluster coordinator in the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion.

She called upon stakeholders to mobilise and motivate the country to put a stop to maternal deaths.

Pregnant women in New Zealand have been urged by health officials to get an early seasonal flu jab in the next few weeks in case there is an early reappearance of swine flu.

The H1N1 influenza, which spread to New Zealand after it broke out in Mexico and the US last year, has been included in the seasonal influenza vaccine for this year, 3 News reported.

Pregnant women in developing countries are using International Women's Day to call for greater investment in maternal health.

Hundreds of thousands of pregnant women in developing countries are at as great a risk of dying in childbirth as women in the UK were a century ago, according to a coalition of campaign groups.