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HIV-free children whose mothers started taking anti-HIV medications while they were in the womb may be at higher risk for lower-than-average scores in one or more areas of development at age 5, according to a study supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Read about NICHD’s research findings and activities from 2022.

A safe, highly effective, reversible method of male contraception would fill an important public health need. Additionally, multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs)—products that prevent both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections—would increase sexual and reproductive health options for both women and men. NICHD supports a broad range of contraceptive research, including efforts to develop male contraceptives and MPTs.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

Youth aged 13 to 24 years who were offered HIV testing by a digital health tool on a tablet computer were at least as likely to accept as those who were offered testing face-to-face, according to an NICHD-funded study.

Despite similar rates of enrollment into medical care, youth with HIV have much lower rates of viral suppression—reducing HIV to undetectable levels—compared to adults, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.

More than 20% of pregnant women beginning anti-HIV treatment were prescribed an antiretroviral treatment that did not meet federal guidelines for use during pregnancy, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Nano-sized vesicles released by certain bacteria that inhabit the vagina may protect against HIV infection, suggests a study of human cells and tissues by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and the University of Bologna, Italy. Known as extracellular vesicles, these bubble-like particles are produced by many kinds of cells and are thought to transport molecules from one cell to another.

Children born to women on HIV therapy containing the drug efavirenz were 2 to 2.5 times more likely to have microcephaly, or small head size, compared to children born to women on regimens of other antiretroviral drugs, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health. The children with microcephaly also had a higher risk for developmental delays, compared to children with normal head size.

Children born to women on HIV therapy containing the drug dolutegravir since conception have a slightly higher risk of neural tube defects, compared to children born to women on regimens of other antiretroviral drugs.

Truvada, a drug combination that reduces the chances of HIV infection in high-risk people may result in small, yet persistent bone loss in younger adolescent males, suggests a study supported by the NICHD. The researchers added, however, that the protection against HIV offered by Truvada far outweighs any possible risks from bone loss.

NICHD was established more than 50 years ago to help understand maternal health and improve pregnancy outcomes. These selected advances highlight NICHD’s contributions to advancing the health and well-being of pregnant women, mothers, and families everywhere.

Now available in DASH: Researchers can request access to NICHD biospecimens for secondary analyses.

In 2018, researchers funded by NICHD made significant progress in advancing the health and well-being of infants, children, teenagers, and adults across the United States and around the world.

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $7.5 million for an international research program to prevent and treat HIV infection among adolescents and young adults in seven African countries and Brazil.

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

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.

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.