The health of pregnant individuals 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 people 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.
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.
Release: “Eat, Sleep, Console” reduces hospital stay and need for medication among opioid-exposed infants
Researchers have found the “Eat, Sleep, Console” (ESC) care approach to be more effective than using the Finnegan Neonatal Abstinence Scoring Tool (FNAST) to assess and manage opioid-exposed newborns, according to a national clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Children born to women with COVID-19 could be at risk for heart disease, diabetes in later life, NIH-funded study suggests
Infants born in 2020 through mid-2021 to women with COVID-19 weighed less at birth, but grew at a faster rate than a comparable group born to women who did not have COVID-19, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Previous studies have found that preterm infants and other infants who are small or underweight at birth and who undergo catch-up growth in the first year are at higher risk for later life obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes, compared to infants born at normal weight. The authors called for additional studies of infants whose mothers had COVID-19 during pregnancy to learn if they have increased health risks later in life.
Release: Tranexamic acid does not appear to prevent maternal hemorrhage after cesarean delivery
Tranexamic acid appears no more effective than placebo in reducing the need for blood transfusion or preventing maternal death in patients with increased risk for excessive bleeding because of cesarean delivery, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. Tranexamic acid slows the natural breakdown of blood clots and was considered promising for reducing the risk of excessive bleeding after giving birth—known as postpartum hemorrhage—after cesarean delivery.
Item of Interest: NICHD announces awards for Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network
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.
Director's Corner: Addressing Inequities to IMPROVE Maternal Health for All
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.
Science Update: Placental cells secrete tiny structures that may play a role in regulating blood sugar during pregnancy, NIH-funded study suggests
Placental cells secrete extracellular vesicles—tiny, balloon-like structures containing proteins, enzymes, DNA, and other molecules capable of transmitting chemical messages between cells—that appear to help regulate glucose uptake by maternal cells, according to a mouse study funded by the National Institutes of Health. In a series of experiments, the researchers found evidence that release of the vesicles follows placental release of the enzyme O-glycosyl transferase (OGT) after glucose levels rise. The findings may inform the development of new treatments for gestational (pregnancy-related) diabetes.
Science Update: Cells from umbilical blood vessel lining secrete tiny structures conveying biochemical messages, NIH study suggests
Cells lining the umbilical vein secrete a newly discovered extracellular vesicle—a tiny, balloon-like structure that influences other cells—suggests a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The findings may have implications for understanding fetal development and may inform strategies to use extracellular vesicles to deliver drugs and other therapies.
Item of Interest: NIH selects next round of winners in the RADx® Tech for Maternal Health Challenge
The National Institutes of Health announced the next round of winners of its RADx® Tech for Maternal Health Challenge—an $8 million prize competition to accelerate development of technologies to improve maternal health outcomes.
Release: New, non-invasive imaging tool maps uterine contractions during labor
The tool has the potential to assist with preterm birth, labor management and clinical decisionmaking.
Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research
The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.
Media Advisory: New MRI method provides detailed view of the placenta during pregnancy
NIH-funded technique enables automatic detection of placental compartments, oxygen status and structural abnormalities.
Science Update: Postpartum depression, reduced breastfeeding may help account for developmental delays seen in children born to women with depression during pregnancy
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.
Science Update: Cellular metabolism regulates developmental rates, suggests NIH-funded study
Cellular metabolism helps govern the speed of embryonic development, according to an NIH funded study. Insights from the work help explain why different animal species develop at distinct rates. The findings also suggest the potential to manipulate developmental rates at the cellular level.
Science Update: NIH researchers map cellular activity underlying infection-induced preterm labor
Mouse study improves understanding of events leading to preterm labor and birth
Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2022
Read about NICHD’s research findings and activities from 2022.
Science Update: NIH-funded study in mice suggests bacteria rely on metal tolerance to cause pregnancy-related infection
A bacterial species that causes chorioamnionitis—an infection of the placenta and fetal membranes that often leads to preterm birth—relies on a gene for metal tolerance to hijack immune cells, suggests a study in mice funded by the National Institutes of Health. The findings indicate that strategies to target the gene and its products could eliminate one of the most common causes of preterm birth.
Science Update: Caffeine consumption during pregnancy may lead to slightly shorter child height
Exposure to caffeine in the womb, even in small amounts, may lead to shorter height in childhood, suggests an analysis by NICHD researchers. Children of women with low caffeine intake during pregnancy were slightly shorter than their peers born to women who consumed no caffeine while pregnant. The gaps in height widened between ages 4 and 8 years.
Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research
The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.
Science Update: Placental malaria may slow glucose flow to the fetus, NIH-funded study suggests
Malaria infection of the placenta may reduce the amount of glucose that passes to the fetus, according to an NIH-funded study. The research involves a placenta on a chip model—a laboratory device incorporating placental tissue to simulate the interface between maternal blood and the outermost part of the placenta. The findings offer insight into how placental malaria may deprive the fetus of an essential nutrient and may inform the development of strategies to prevent or treat the condition.