The Gynecologic Health and Disease Branch recently published its scientific vision. The document summarizes its research themes, which provide direction for future research.
News
NICHD issues News Releases and Media Advisories to the news media. Spotlight and Research Feature articles explain NICHD research findings and public health issues to the general public. An Item of Interest is a short announcement of relevant information, such as a notable staff change.
Item of Interest: FDA approves PrEP therapy for adolescents at risk of HIV
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved an anti-HIV drug combination for use in at-risk adolescents. FDA’s decision was informed by an NICHD-supported study of adolescent males.
Science Update: NIH-supported study finds no difference between two surgeries commonly done to treat vaginal prolapse
Women in study report sustained improvements in symptoms five years after either procedure
Spotlight: Focus on Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness
The month of May offers an opportunity to focus on NICHD’s Pediatric Trauma and Critical Illness Branch, which observes its 5th anniversary supporting research on preventing, treating, and reducing all forms of childhood trauma, injury, and critical illness.
Release: Anti-HIV drug combination does not increase preterm birth risk, study suggests
A drug combination aimed at preventing transmission of HIV from a pregnant woman to her fetus likely does not increase the risk for preterm birth and early infant death, according to a re-analysis of two studies funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Researchers identify potential genetic risk factor for sudden infant death syndrome
Mutations may impair breathing while under stress, suggests NIH-supported study
Release: Atypical brain development observed in preschoolers with ADHD symptoms
NIH-funded study uses high-resolution brain scans to uncover structural changes.
Release: Diuretic therapy for extremely preterm infants does not alleviate respiratory problems
Extremely premature infants who received diuretic therapy to help overcome respiratory problems were more likely to require respiratory support, according to an NIH analysis.
Item of Interest: NICHD reports success of data sharing resource, two years after launch
More than two years after its inception, NICHD’s Data and Specimen Hub (DASH) has received 73 data access requests and resulted in 3 published studies.
Spotlight: What to Know About Endometriosis
Understanding endometriosis, causes and treatment, is part of NICHD’s mission. Learn more about signs and symptoms.
Release: Antiviral drug not beneficial for reducing mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B when added to existing preventatives, study shows
An antiviral drug commonly prescribed to treat hepatitis B infection does not significantly reduce mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus, according to a clinical trial funded by NIH.
Release: NIH-funded researchers identify risk factors for sleep apnea during pregnancy
Snoring, older age and obesity may increase a pregnant woman’s risk for sleep apnea—or interrupted breathing during sleep—according to researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Restoring gut microbiome may help women with polycystic ovary syndrome, suggests NIH study
Hormonal changes in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a common condition that contributes to infertility, may alter their intestinal microbe populations, according to an NICHD-funded study.
Media Advisory: Induced labor after 39 weeks in healthy women may reduce need for C section
Healthy first-time mothers whose labor was induced in the 39th week of pregnancy were less likely to have a cesarean delivery, compared to a similar group who were not electively induced at 39 weeks, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Release: Graduates of early childhood program show greater educational gains as adults
Students who participated in an intensive childhood education program from preschool to third grade were more likely to achieve an academic degree beyond high school, compared to a similar group that received other intervention services as children, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
News Release: NIH Begins Large HIV Treatment Study in Pregnant Women
The National Institutes of Health has launched a large international study to compare the safety and efficacy of three antiretroviral treatment regimens for pregnant women living with HIV and the safety of these regimens for their infants.
News Release: Zika infection during pregnancy may disrupt fetal oxygen supply
Zika virus infection appears to affect oxygen delivery to the fetuses of pregnant monkeys, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Folic acid, multivitamins before and during pregnancy may reduce autism risk, suggests NIH-funded study
Children born to women who took either folic acid or a daily multivitamin before or during pregnancy were less likely to have a child diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, compared to children whose mothers did not take any prenatal vitamins, according to researchers funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Maternal genetic material essential for embryo development, NIH-funded study suggests
A molecule containing genetic instructions passed on from the mother to the egg must be present for the fertilized egg to survive and develop into a normal embryo, according to results of an NICHD-funded zebrafish study.
Science Update: NICHD-funded researchers determine optimal blood pressure levels during CPR for infants and children
Infants and children who suffer cardiac arrest while in the hospital have a greater chance of survival if their blood pressure is maintained at a targeted level throughout life-saving CPR treatment.