News & Updates

NIH has announced winners of its competition to accelerate the development of diagnostic and monitoring technologies to improve fetal health outcomes.

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

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

NIH awarded two new grants to expand its Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence. These institutions design and implement research projects seeking to reduce pregnancy-related complications and deaths and promote maternal health equity in the United States.

Individuals born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy and when they were children may be at an increased risk for high blood pressure and diabetes.

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

NIH has announced finalists in its competition to accelerate the development of diagnostic and monitoring technologies to improve fetal health outcomes.

As we ring in 2024, we’d like to take a brief look back on our accomplishments during 2023. These activities illustrate the institute’s continued commitment to research and training in its mission areas.

This collaboration will promote safe infant sleep with and within American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

NIH will award up to $2 million in cash prizes as part of its Fetal Monitoring Challenge to accelerate development of diagnostic and monitoring technologies that improve fetal health outcomes in low-resource settings. U.S. scientists, engineers, and clinicians can submit innovative approaches and compete for prizes and resources to support technology development and clinical impact, with a focus on point-of-care and home-based diagnostic and monitoring technologies that may reduce fetal health risk and loss during and after birth.

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

NIH has awarded $24 million in first-year funding to establish Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence. The centers will develop and evaluate innovative approaches to reduce pregnancy-related complications and deaths and promote maternal health equity.

The health of pregnant women and new mothers in the nation’s prisons should be prioritized to avoid future public health crises from COVID-19, according to an analysis by NICHD-funded investigators. Recommended policy changes include early release, when possible, because pregnant women are at high risk from COVID-19, and prisons are not well-equipped to provide the necessary medical care. Moreover, prisons should promote COVID-19 vaccination and develop targeted messages for this population to counteract vaccine misinformation.

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) has announced new funding for participating centers in its Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units (MFMU) Network.

Black people are about three times as likely as White people to die from a pregnancy-related cause, regardless of income or education level. The NIH-wide IMPROVE initiative works to reduce preventable pregnancy-related deaths and complications and promote health equity.

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

Researchers know that children born to mothers who have depression in pregnancy are at risk for developmental delays but haven’t known why. Now, a National Institutes of Health study suggests that depression persisting after pregnancy and reduced breastfeeding may account for at least part of the increased risk. Based on their results, researchers conclude that physicians may be able to reduce this risk by offering treatment for depression both during and after pregnancy and by counseling new mothers on how to breastfeed successfully.

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

Scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a same-day test to identify abnormal fetal chromosomes.

The increase in pregnancy complications linked to air pollution exposure could result from the pollutants’ direct effects on the placenta, suggests a study in mice funded by the National Institutes of Health. Placentas of mice exposed to a mixture of common urban air pollutants before and during pregnancy were inflamed and had a loss of blood vessel cells. The study authors say the findings could provide insight into how air pollution might affect pregnancies and lead to strategies for preventing pregnancy complications.