{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]],"date-time":"2026-08-26T17:17:28Z","timestamp":1787764648167,"version":"build-2784847793"},"reference-count":11,"publisher":"Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)","issue":"7","content-domain":{"domain":["lww.com","ovid.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2023,7]]},"abstract":"\n A\n BSTRACT<\/jats:sc>\n <\/jats:title>\n \n Background:<\/jats:title>\n Early pregnancy assessment unit (EPAU) is a dedicated unit that provides specialist care such as definitive ultrasonographic and biochemical assessment to women who have or have had vaginal bleeding or pain before 16 weeks of pregnancy. Such patients usually have a positive pregnancy test with a scan showing pregnancy of an unknown location, previous ectopic pregnancy, recurrent miscarriages, or previous molar pregnancy. Such a holistic and prompt approach leads to better outcome in the management of women with early pregnancy and other complications.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Aim:<\/jats:title>\n This study aimed to describe the diagnosis and outcome of early pregnancy pain and bleeding, managed by rapid ultrasonographic and biochemical assessments by a dedicated gynecological team in a private hospital to determine the feasibility of establishing early pregnancy assessment units (EPAUs) in Nigeria.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Materials and Methods:<\/jats:title>\n This is a cross-sectional study of eligible cases of early pregnancy bleeding and pain in a private gynecological hospital in Enugu, Nigeria.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results:<\/jats:title>\n During the 9-year study period, 160 women with early pregnancy pain or bleeding were analyzed. The mean age of the participants was 32.3 \u00b1 7.2 years, and they were mostly multipara (68.7%) and Christians and of the Igbo tribe (91.3%). The final diagnosis after clinical and radiological evaluations showed that the majority had miscarriages (82.5%), while 17.5% had ectopic gestations. All the participants had their definitive diagnosis and treatment within 24 hours of presentation. There was no recorded case of maternal death.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusion:<\/jats:title>\n EPAUs are feasible in a Nigerian setting provided that trained, dedicated staff and equipment are provided.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.4103\/njcp.njcp_172_23","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,1]],"date-time":"2023-08-01T01:22:26Z","timestamp":1690852946000},"page":"1036-1039","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1097\/lww.0000000000001000","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["The Feasibility of Introducing Early Pregnancy Assessment Unit in Nigerian Hospitals: A Pilot Study from a Private Hospital in Enugu, Southeast Nigeria"],"prefix":"10.4103","volume":"26","author":[{"given":"GO","family":"Ugwu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Nigeria, Enugu, Nigeria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"CA","family":"Iyoke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Nigeria, Enugu, Nigeria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"JE","family":"Nnagbo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Nigeria, Enugu, Nigeria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"276","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,3]]},"reference":[{"key":"R1-20240907","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1479-828X.2009.00954.x","article-title":"The early pregnancy assessment project: The effect of cooperative care in the emergency department for management of early pregnancy complications","volume":"49","author":"O'Rourke","year":"2009","journal-title":"Aust N Z J Obstet 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complications: A 10-year retrospective study","volume":"40","author":"Pinnaduwage","year":"2018","journal-title":"J Obstet Gynaecol Can"},{"key":"R10-20240907","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"730","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1552-6909.2009.01075.x","article-title":"A collaborative framework for managing pregnancy loss in the emergency department","volume":"38","author":"Bacidore","year":"2009","journal-title":"J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs"},{"key":"R11-20240907","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"344","DOI":"10.1002\/uog.7523","article-title":"Management of women referred to an acute gynecology unit: Impact of an ultrasound-based model of care","volume":"35","author":"Bignardi","year":"2010","journal-title":"Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"R12-20240907","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2116","DOI":"10.1111\/1471-0528.16866","article-title":"Women's experiences of early pregnancy assessment unit services: A qualitative investigation","volume":"128","author":"Hall","year":"2021","journal-title":"BJOG"}],"container-title":["Nigerian Journal of Clinical Practice"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ovid.com\/10.4103\/njcp.njcp_172_23","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,26]],"date-time":"2026-08-26T16:17:25Z","timestamp":1787761045000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ovid.com\/10.4103\/njcp.njcp_172_23"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2023,7]]},"references-count":11,"journal-issue":{"issue":"7","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2023]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4103\/njcp.njcp_172_23","relation":{},"ISSN":["1119-3077","2229-7731"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1119-3077","type":"print"},{"value":"2229-7731","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2023,7]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2023-03-09","name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication 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