Contrary to results from earlier studies, the vitamin-like substance myo-inositol does not appear to prevent a potentially blinding complication of preterm birth and may even reduce rates of survival among preterm infants, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
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: NICHD enhances partnership with Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity to promote safe infant sleep
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.
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
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.
Media Advisory: Air pollution exposure in early pregnancy linked to miscarriage, NIH study suggests
Exposure to common air pollutants, such as ozone and fine particles, may increase the risk of early pregnancy loss, according to an NIH study.
NICHD research links air pollution and extreme temperature to stillbirth risk
NICHD’s Pauline Mendola examines whether air pollution and extreme temperature increase the risk of stillbirth.
Probiotics may prevent life-threatening infection in newborns
Daily doses of beneficial bacteria, or probiotics, reduced the rate of sepsis—a life-threatening infection of the bloodstream—among newborns in India by 40 percent, according to researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Blood of SIDS infants contains high levels of serotonin
Blood samples from infants who died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) had high levels of serotonin, a chemical that carries signals along and between nerves, according to a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.
NICHD’s Safe to Sleep Campaign with Dr. Marian Willinger
A conversation with Dr. Marian Willinger before her retirement. Dr. Willinger helped launch NICHD’s Safe to Sleep campaign and led research efforts on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, stillbirth and infant health.
NICHD-funded study explores the toll of pediatric trauma
A conversation with Dr. Sheri Crow, a pediatrician specializing in critical care at the Mayo Clinic, about her NICHD-funded research. Dr. Crow has explored the long-term health outcomes of children who experience traumatic injury or a life-threatening illness in early childhood.
Survival rate may be improving for extremely preterm infants
Very early preterm infants are more likely to survive than in previous years, and the survivors are less likely to have neurological problems, according to an analysis of records from a National Institutes of Health research network.
Getting to Know the New NICHD Director
NICHD Director Dr. Diana Bianchi shares some thoughts about joining NICHD.
Federal agencies express support for updated safe infant sleep recommendations
Federal agencies concerned with infant health and welfare today announced their support of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) updated recommendations on safe infant sleep.
Even partial steroid treatment can benefit extremely preterm infants, NIH study suggests
Steroids improve survival and reduce the chances of certain complications for extremely premature infants, even if the treatment course is not finished before delivery, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Research Roundup: Here’s How NICHD Research Is Improving Patients’ Lives
Read a selection of past Spotlights featuring the stories of kids and adults whose lives have been enhanced by NICHD-supported research through new treatments, improved patient engagement, and new prevention and intervention campaigns.
New treatment regimen cuts severity of drug-resistant malaria in pregnancy
A two-drug preventive treatment greatly reduces the severity of malaria during pregnancy, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The treatment provides an alternative for many parts of Africa where the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum has grown resistant to standard treatment.
NICHD Invites Researchers to Share Their Data through Online Resource
Researchers may now add data from NICHD-funded studies directly to the NICHD Data and Specimen Hub (DASH).
Advising moms not to bed share with infants does not discourage breastfeeding
Following advice to sleep in the same room with their infants —but not in the same bed—does not appear to discourage new mothers from breastfeeding, as some experts had feared, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
US stillbirth rates unchanged after move to discourage elective deliveries before 39 weeks
The recommendation to delay delivery of otherwise healthy infants until at least the 39th week of pregnancy does not appear to have increased stillbirths in the United States, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.