Forty-six middle-income couples planning different childbirth methods--natural hospital delivery; home delivery; hospital delivery with anesthesia--were studied from the sixth month of pregnancy until six months after the birth. The father's participation in the birth and his attitude toward it were found to constitute the most significant variable in predicting father attachment. prenatal education and structuring of the birth environment are suggested to obtain maximum participation and involvement of fathers.

A case report is presented of a woman who was "Tasered" by law enforcement personnel while 12 weeks pregnant. The Taser (Thomas A. Swift's Electric Rifle) is an electronic immobilization and defense weapon that has been commercially available since 1974. The Taser was developed as an alternative to the .38 special handgun. The patient was hit with Taser probes in the abdomen and the leg. She began to spontaneously miscarry 7 days later and received a dilatation and currettage procedure 14 days later for incomplete abortion. The world's literature on electrical and lightning injury to pregnant women is reviewed, and the mechanism of action of Taser injury is discussed. As use of the Taser becomes more common, obstetrical clinicians may encounter complications from the Taser more often.

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