News & Updates

Sequencing the fetal DNA that circulates in a pregnant woman’s blood holds promise for modern genomic medicine, according to a review article by NICHD Director Diana W. Bianchi, M.D., and a colleague. Fetal DNA sequencing improves the accuracy of prenatal screening tests for genetic conditions and at times has led to the diagnosis of maternal conditions that may have otherwise gone undetected.

The study seeks to determine if exposure poses a risk for neural tube defects.

Dr. Enrique Schisterman, Chief of the Epidemiology Branch shares his personal struggle with infertility, which led him to dedicate a research career focusing on ways to help couples boost fertility.

As part of NICHD’s continued partnership with the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity®, Inc., the NICHD-led Safe to Sleep® campaign recently launched a mini-grant program to support fraternity members in conducting safe infant sleep outreach. The mini-grants will enable Kappa members to lead and host activities in their communities, where they can share safe infant sleep messages in culturally sensitive ways.

Gestational diabetes may predispose women to early-stage kidney damage, a precursor to chronic kidney disease, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.

Women who experience vaginal bleeding for more than one day during the first trimester of pregnancy may be more likely to have a smaller baby, compared to women who do not experience bleeding in the first trimester, suggest researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

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.

Elevated blood pressure before conception may increase the chances for pregnancy loss, according to an analysis by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The authors conclude that lifestyle changes to keep blood pressure under control could potentially reduce the risk of loss. The study appears in Hypertension.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Women with moderate to severe iodine deficiency may take longer to achieve a pregnancy, compared to women with normal iodine levels, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. Carmen Zorrilla, who leads NICHD’s Zika in Infants and Pregnancy (ZIP) study in Puerto Rico, reports on how Hurricane Maria affected the Island’s largest hospital in San Juan.

Exposure to common air pollutants, such as ozone and fine particles, may increase the risk of early pregnancy loss, according to an NIH study.

Obesity during pregnancy—independent of its health consequences such as diabetes—may account for the higher risk of giving birth to an atypically large infant.

A woman’s weight gain in the second trimester of a twin pregnancy is most closely associated with fetal growth and the size of the babies at the time of birth, according to a prospective study by researchers at the NICHD.

NICHD’s Pauline Mendola examines whether air pollution and extreme temperature increase the risk of stillbirth.