American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Volume 196, Issue 2 , Pages 155.e1-155.e6 , February 2007

Maternal and obstetric complications of pregnancy are associated with increasing gestational age at term

  • Aaron B. Caughey, MD, MPP, MPH, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA
  • ,
  • Naomi E. Stotland, MD

      Affiliations

    • Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA
  • ,
  • A. Eugene Washington, MD, MSc

      Affiliations

    • Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA
  • ,
  • Gabriel J. Escobar, MD

      Affiliations

    • Division of Research, Perinatal Research Unit, Kaiser Permanente, Oakland, CA.

Received 14 April 2006 ,Revised 19 June 2006 ,Accepted 30 August 2006.

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 Drs Caughey and Stotland are Women’s Reproductive Health Research Scholars, sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Grant # HD01262. This project was supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (grant number P01 HS010856, “Promoting Effective Communication and Decision Making for Diverse Populations”). The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the AHRQ.Reprints not available from the authors.Cite this article as: Caughey AB, Stotland NE, Washington AE, et al. Maternal and obstetric complications of pregnancy are associated with increasing gestational age at term. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2007;196:155.e1-155.e6.

PII: S0002-9378(06)01178-1

doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2006.08.040

American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Volume 196, Issue 2 , Pages 155.e1-155.e6 , February 2007