Strengthening our understanding of human milk biology and lactation is essential to support breastfeeding and to ensure the health of infants who do not have access to a lactating parent’s milk. NICHD supports a range of efforts to explore human milk as an active biological system and to promote the inclusion of pregnant and lactating people in clinical research.
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: Cervical pessary no more effective than usual care in preventing preterm birth risk
A device known as a pessary, thought promising for reducing preterm birth risk due to a short cervix, appears no more effective than usual medical care, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. A pessary is a rounded silicone device that fits around a cervix that has shortened, to keep it from opening and leading to miscarriage or preterm birth. The device is typically removed before the 37th week of pregnancy.
Science Update: Prenatal depression may increase risk of cardiovascular disease after birth, NICHD-funded study suggests
Depression from six weeks gestation through the end of pregnancy may increase the risk of heart and blood vessel disease up to two years after birth, suggests an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Drug reduces fibroids in mice, according to NIH-funded study
Tranilast, a drug used to treat allergies and certain types of scars, reduced the size of human fibroid tumors implanted in mice, according to an NIH-funded study. The authors said the results warranted additional studies in animals and perhaps in later human trials to evaluate this potential treatment for non-cancerous gynecologic tumors that can cause bleeding and pain and sometimes interfere with fertility.
Item of Interest: NICHD-Developed Guide Sets Framework to Link Maternal, Infant Health Data
A new guide developed by NICHD and its partners promises to standardize the exchange of clinical data on maternal and infant health. The guide is an important step toward establishing a common framework to help clinicians and scientists better understand the root causes and high rates of maternal morbidity and mortality.
Item of Interest: NIH selects next round of winners in the Connecting the Community for Maternal Health Challenge
NIH has announced the next round of winners of its Connecting the Community for Maternal Health Challenge—a $3 million prize competition to encourage community-based and advocacy organizations in the United States to develop the infrastructure and capabilities necessary to conduct maternal health research.
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: NIH-funded study finds no effects of COVID-19 vaccine on menstrual cycle regularity, bleed length, or menstrual pain
Premenopausal females who were vaccinated for COVID-19 were no more likely to report irregular menstrual cycles, heavier bleeds or menstrual pain than a similar group of unvaccinated women, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, consistent with several previous studies, participants reported a small increase in cycle length of roughly one day following injection.
Item of Interest: New policies needed for maternal health care among incarcerated people with COVID-19, according to NICHD-funded researchers
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.
Science Update: Gene discovery could lead to development of new male contraceptive, NIH-funded study suggests
Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have discovered a gene that could serve as a target for a new, non-hormonal contraceptive. The gene, arrestin domain containing 5 (ARRDC5) is present in several mammalian species and controls the last step in sperm maturation. Deactivating the gene results in lower sperm count and sperm with impaired movement that are incapable of fertilizing an egg—without any apparent ill effects elsewhere in the body.
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.
Spotlight: Women in Science: Dr. Veronica Gomez-Lobo’s Nontraditional Route to Research
Dr. Veronica Gomez-Lobo, director of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology at NICHD, began
her career as a clinician focused on caring for underserved populations. Taking advantage of interesting opportunities
led her to become involved in medical education, and later, in scientific research.
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: Women report small, temporary increase in menstrual flow after COVID-19 vaccination, NIH-funded study suggests
Compared to unvaccinated women, women vaccinated for COVID-19 have a slightly higher risk of a heavier period after vaccination, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, flow returns to normal in the next menstrual period.
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.
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.
Science Update: Risk of developmental delays may be higher for HIV-free children whose mothers began antiretroviral treatment during pregnancy, NIH-funded study suggests
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.
Science Update: High-intensity walking intervals better than moderate walking for stroke rehabilitation, NIH-funded study suggests
A program with intervals of high-intensity walking promotes greater gains in fitness for stroke patients than the currently recommended program of moderate-intensity walking, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study enrolled chronic stroke patients—those at least six months past their stroke—often considered more difficult to rehabilitate than recent stroke patients.