Birth size, and in particular birth length, correlates with subsequent risk of breast cancer in adulthood, according to a new study published in PLoS Medicine by researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Maternal death rates have remained constant in the United States for many decades. Are there any improvements in health care that could reduce these rates further? In a study published in the July 2008 issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, researchers examined all maternal deaths in nearly 1.5 million birth records from the last 6 years to look for possible keys to saving more mothers.

Maternal diet influences the chances of having male or female offspring. Research published today in BioMed Central's open access journal Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology has demonstrated that ewes fed a diet enriched with polyunsaturated fats for one month prior to conception have a significantly higher chance of giving birth to male offspring.

Does season of birth play a role in the development of nearsightedness? Do corneas from older donors meet quality standards for transplant surgery? These are among the topics explored in the April 2008 issue of Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

An in vitro fertilization technique that can avoid multiple births appears to be effective for women older than 35, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The UK government claims it is trying to give women more choice by converting local maternity units to midwife led services. But are they safe? Two experts debate the issue in this week's BMJ.

Planning for a summer delivery for your child? You might want to choose an ophthalmologist along with an obstetrician.

Preimplantation genetic screening (PGS), often considered to hold out the best chance for older women undergoing IVF to have a pregnancy and birth, does not increase on-going pregnancy or live birth rates, an embryologist told the 23rd annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology today (Wednesday 4 July). The research is published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine.