Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2022

Friday, December 30, 2022

As we ring in 2023, it’s fitting to reflect on our accomplishments over the last year. NICHD is pleased to share selected highlights from our research, outreach, and collaborative efforts during 2022. These activities illustrate the institute’s continued commitment to research and training to understand human development, improve reproductive health, enhance the lives of children and adolescents, and optimize abilities for all.

Young children are seated at a table and drawing with a teacher. Everyone is wearing facemasks.

Understanding the Effects of the Pandemic

As the pandemic continues into its third year, NICHD continues to support and conduct research to understand the long-term effects of COVID-19 on pregnancy, child development, and mental health. Learn more.

A group of teenagers walk down a school hallway, and one student is being pushed down the hall in his wheelchair. Everyone is wearing facemasks.

Advancing Health Outcomes During COVID-19

NICHD supports COVID-19 research to better address the needs of women, children, and people with disabilities as the pandemic evolves. Findings from this work have helped inform school polices, identified potential new treatments, and addressed long-term health concerns. Learn more.

A pregnant woman shows off her post-vaccination band-aid for the camera. A healthcare provider and other patients are visible in the background. Everyone is wearing facemasks.

Encouraging COVID-19 Vaccination

NICHD has delivered rigorous scientific evidence to enhance understanding of the effects of COVID-19 vaccines. Giving people more information about what to expect after vaccination can aid decision-making and potentially reduce vaccine hesitancy. Learn more.

A healthcare provider, who has her back turned to the camera, speaks with a patient who is facing the camera.

Promoting Women’s Health

Women’s health is a central focus for NICHD. The institute’s research portfolio includes studies to address gynecological issues, pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes, infertility and contraception, and other issues affecting women’s health and wellness. Learn more.

A couple is seated and holding hands in front of a partially visible healthcare provider who is writing on a clipboard.

Understanding Pregnancy Loss, Fertility, and Contraception

NICHD research projects continue to broaden knowledge about the spectrum of issues that affect family planning and help ensure healthy pregnancies. Learn more.

A smiling father gently cradles a sleeping newborn baby in his hands.

Improving Newborn Outcomes

NICHD’s commitment to improving the health of infants includes studies of how pregnancy and post-delivery treatments affect overall health. Learn more.

A healthcare provider checks a teenager’s blood glucose by using a fingerprick on a monitor. Both are smiling, and a plate of fresh fruit is visible on the table.

Optimizing Child and Adolescent Nutrition and Health

Research on all aspects of child and adolescent health and development is central to the NICHD mission. Learn more.

A father and son, who has Down Syndrome and is wearing glasses, are playing together in an outdoor playground. Both are smiling.

Advancing Research on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Improving the health of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) has been central to NICHD’s mission since it was established in 1962. The institute continues to lead research on IDDs six decades later. Learn more.

A mother and her teenage daughter are having a conversation on the teen’s bed. Both look serious and attentive to each other.

Protecting Families from Bullying or Violence

NICHD supports research to identify risk factors for bullying and for violence and to develop new prevention and treatment strategies to protect individuals and families. Learn more.

A man in a wheelchair has a conversation with another man who is standing. Both are moving across a room where other adults are seated around a coffee table.

Addressing Health Disparities

Understanding health disparities is key to addressing and eliminating them. Recent NICHD health disparities research has focused on women’s health and intellectual, developmental, or physical disabilities. Learn more.

A healthcare provider, who is crouched on the ground, adjusts a man’s prosthetic leg.

Improving Treatments

In addition to developing new or improved therapies and treatments for many different health conditions, NICHD supports research to ensure that such interventions are optimally implemented. Learn more.

DHHC20 is shown in red, white, and blue, and the membranes are a yellow lipid bilayer.

Boosting Basic Science

Basic science, an important focus for NICHD researchers, enhances understanding of living systems and life processes. This knowledge can later be translated into applications that benefit human health. Learn more.

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