Genomic sequencing identified a higher risk of childhood genetic disorders in 9 percent of newborns who had passed standard screening for these diseases, according to researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health. The findings, from the BabySeq Project, are part of a larger effort to examine whether newborn genomic sequencing is suitable for routine health care.
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.
Media Advisory: NICHD chronicles its major research advances of 2018
As 2018 winds down, a new slideshow highlights a selection of initiatives, therapies, and scientific advances supported by NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
Spotlight: Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2018
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.
Item of Interest: NICHD seeks applications to study effects of maternal opioid use on newborns
The initiative seeks to improve treatment and care of infants and children who were exposed to opioids in the womb.
Release: Low-income, rural kids at higher risk for second- or third-hand smoke exposure
Infants and toddlers in low-income, rural areas may be at higher risk for second- and third-hand smoke than previously reported, according to an NIH-supported study.
Release: NIH to fund national data collection on new mothers with disabilities
Collaboration with CDC aimed at evaluating pregnancy initiatives and outcomes
Release: Myo-inositol unlikely to reduce risk of eye complication in preterm infants
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.
Release: NIH led task force submits recommendations on research needs for pregnant and nursing mothers
NIH led task force submits recommendations on research needs for pregnant and nursing mothers
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.
Media Advisory: NIH study finds no significant link between brain injury and IV fluid treatment of pediatric diabetic ketoacidosis
Research supported by the National Institutes of Health finds that giving children intravenous (IV) fluids to treat diabetic ketoacidosis—an emergency complication of untreated diabetes—does not appear to worsen the brain swelling that may accompany the condition.
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: 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.
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.
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.
Spotlight: Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2017
Over the past year, NICHD contributed to numerous scientific advances and key initiatives.
News Release: NIH study of WWII evacuees suggests mental illness may be passed to offspring
Mental illness associated with early childhood adversity may be passed from generation to generation, according to a study of adults whose parents evacuated Finland as children during World War II.
Spotlight: Zika Research after Hurricane Maria
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.
News Release: Obesity during pregnancy may lead directly to fetal overgrowth, NIH study suggests
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.