Obstetrics & Gynecology

News and Events

Programs and providers of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine are often the focus of news stories and features appearing in major national media. We invite you to review some stories that typify the breakthrough accomplishments of our remarkable team and highlight the impact our care has had on patient’s lives.

Research Reveals How a Common Bacterium May Spread from the Intestine

microscopic rendering

A typical gut bacterium that can spread through the body and cause a serious infection resists natural immune defenses and antibiotics by enhancing its protective outer layer, known as the cell envelope, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The finding suggests possible new ways to target these bacterial infections.

The research, published Nov. 10 in mBio, illuminates some of the underlying changes that may occur when Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) populations move through the epithelial cells lining the intestine and escape to reach other body sites.

“Systemic infections with E. faecalis can be lethal because this microbe has a remarkable ability to adapt to various environments and resist treatments,” said principal investigator Dr. Diana K. Morales, assistant professor of microbiology and immunology in obstetrics and gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. People at risk of developing these infections include those who are taking antibiotics or who have compromised immune systems, which facilitate E. faecalis overgrowth in the intestine. Understanding how E. faecalis moves out of the gut and spreads may one day help scientists find small molecules to stop the bacterium’s extra-intestinal dissemination, preventing dangerous infections.

Lack of Cell Clean-Up Process Associated with Development of Post-Partum Depression

a woman holding her baby

A cellular process known as autophagy that helps rid cells of debris may be impaired in pregnant women who go on to develop post-partum depression (PPD), according to new research from Weill Cornell Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and UVA Health investigators.

“Our research indicates that autophagy may be dampened in pregnant women who go on to develop PPD, so their cells are collecting an increasing amount of junk or unhealthy byproducts from metabolic processes in the body,” said the paper’s first author Dr. Lauren M. Osborne, vice chair for clinical research for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. Dr. Osborne conducted the research while on Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine’s faculty.

In the paper, published Sept. 22 in Molecular Psychiatry, researchers noted that understanding the underlying mechanisms of PPD could help doctors better manage the disorder.

Permanent Birth Control Methods for Women Have Up to Six Percent Failure Rates

pregnancy test laying on a wooden surface

Hysteroscopic sterilization, a nonincisional procedure, was found to be as effective as minimally invasive laparoscopic sterilization in preventing pregnancy, but both methods had higher than expected failure rates, according to a new study led by an investigator at Weill Cornell Medicine. 

The comparative study, published April 12 in Fertility and Sterility, found that both methods had failure rates of five to six percent at 5 years post-procedure. Dr. Aileen Gariepy conducted the investigation while at Yale School of Medicine; she is now director of complex family planning in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. Co-investigators included Dr. Eleanor Bimla Schwarz from the University of California, San Francisco and University of California, Davis, and Dr. Diana Zuckerman from the National Center for Health Research.

Dr. Aileen Gariepy

Dr. Aileen Gariepy

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