News

Increased stress may interfere with adjustment to new motherhood, mother-infant bonding

Read about NICHD’s research findings and activities from 2020.

For pregnant women with COVID-19 in the third trimester, antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 virus appear to be transferred to the fetus at lower levels, compared to antibodies against two other respiratory diseases, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, one type of antibody against SARS-CoV-2 was transferred to the fetus more efficiently than the other antibodies against the virus, raising the possibility of at least some immune protection against the disease for the newborn.

Pregnant women who are infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, during the third trimester are unlikely to pass the infection to their newborns, suggests an NIH-funded study.

National Institutes of Health study suggests women with mood disorders, gestatational diabetes may have a higher risk.

Traces of genetic material from the placenta and other organs circulating in a pregnant woman’s blood stream could potentially be used to predict the risk for complications in later pregnancy, according to a new NICHD-supported study.

Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have used a rapid DNA sequencing technique to identify gene variants in roughly a third of cases of nonimmune Hydrops fetalis (NIHF), a serious condition in which a fetus develops fluid buildup inside the abdominal cavity, lungs, or other parts of the body. The findings suggest that the DNA sequencing technique, known as exome sequencing, could be used to provide information unavailable with current genetic testing methods.

The study of approximately 16,000 pregnant women will continue 12 months after childbirth and compare maternal, fetal and newborn outcomes of participants infected with the virus to those of pregnant women who have not.

New tools estimate fetal growth percentiles and velocity, and they account for racial and ethnic variations.

Researchers to evaluate medical records of 21,000 pregnant women

Program will include lessons learned from caring for pregnant women with COVID-19.

Research on the causes of and effective treatments for endometriosis is a high priority for NICHD. Our grantees share their findings and ongoing research.

Gene modifications correspond to blood pressure increases at distinct pregnancy intervals.

To expand the reach of its crowdsourcing pregnancy research project, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently launched a Spanish version of PregSource®.

Women who breastfed their infants exclusively for 7 to 12 months may have a significantly lower risk of early menopause than their peers who breastfed their infants for less than a month, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Read about NICHD’s notable research findings and activities from 2019.

NICHD’s new initiative—Pregnancy for Every Body—educates plus-size pregnant women about healthy pregnancy and the importance of working with a healthcare provider to develop a pregnancy plan.

A new imaging technique to track maternal blood flow to the placenta has the potential to help diagnose several common complications in early pregnancy, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Researchers used the technique, referred to as pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling magnetic resonance imaging (pCASL MRI), to identify women with reduced placental blood flow who later developed one or more complications.

Sleeping on the back or side through the 30th week of pregnancy does not appear to increase the risk of stillbirth, reduced size at birth, or high blood pressure disorders of pregnancy, suggests an analysis funded by the NICHD.