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The impact of uterine cervix cancer (UCC) can be greatly reduced by regular vaginal examination and other preventive measures. With this aim, UCC screening programs had been developed and applied for several years in Mexico and elsewhere. One point still to be considered in such preventive programs is the possible circannual pattern in the morbidity or mortality of UCC. With the aim of identifying a possible circannual pattern of variation in the incidence of UCC, we analyzed the monthly totals of positive detected cases of UCC in the state of Nuevo León (Mexico) between 1978 and 1987. For eliminating bias due to the seasonal variation in the number of preventive check-ups, data were first expressed in percentage of tests done in the same month. The least-squares fit of a 1-year cosine curve to the data reveals a statistically significant circannual pattern (p = 0.013), with a maximum of relative incidence detected in February. Results indicate UCC incidence higher than the yearly average during the winter, with secondary peaks in August and November. This pattern of variation is similar if one considers separately for analysis the relative incidence of type III, IV, or V UCC (relating to cases suggesting, highly suggesting, or concluding a malignant alteration, respectively). For evaluating the cost-effectiveness of the UCC screening campaign providing these data, the monthly totals of screening check-ups done over the same period were also analyzed. Results reveal a statistically significant circannual rhythm (p < 0.001), with a maximum detected in June.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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Studies based on office blood pressure measurements concluded that parity has significant effects on blood pressure during pregnancy. The authors evaluated possible differences in the circadian pattern of blood pressure as a function of parity in normotensive women systematically studied by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. They analyzed 1400 blood pressure series sampled for 48 consecutive hours every 4 weeks from the first obstetric visit (usually within the first trimester of pregnancy) until delivery in 234 women. The circadian pattern of blood pressure variation for each group (nulliparous vs. multiparous) and trimester of gestation was established by population multiple-component analysis. A highly statistically significant circadian pattern, described by a model that includes components with periods of 24 and 12 hours, was demonstrated for systolic and diastolic blood pressure for both groups of pregnant women in all trimesters (p<0.001). There was no significant difference in 24-hour mean among groups divided by parity at any stage of pregnancy (p>0.315). Data obtained from systematic ambulatory monitoring in normotensive pregnant women indicate the lack of differences in blood pressure according to parity. Reference thresholds for blood pressure in pregnancy could thus be developed as a function of rest-activity cycle and gestational age only, independent of parity.