Other content tagged: news research
Docosahexaenoic acid (an omega-3) supplementation during pregnancy to reduce early preterm birth: new findings
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), provided as a prenatal omega-3 supplement, could reduce early preterm birth (EPB), as a recent study suggests. Researchers conducted a study with 1032 participants in the USA comparing a dose of 1000 mg to the standard prenatal dose of 200 mg of DHA. Results show better outcomes with 1000 mg DHA daily than 200 mg in reducing EPB if participants had low DHA status at enrolment. Early preterm birth (EPB) is defined…
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Extreme heat exposure as an increased risk for preterm birth and stillbirth – results from two studies
Climate change causes more frequent and extreme heatwaves, resulting in higher temperatures around the world. Several studies have found that extreme heat in pregnancy may lead to adverse birth outcomes. For this purpose, two studies in different settings (one in the United States and one in lower- to middle-income countries) have addressed this issue. Both studies found, that exposure to extreme heat waves is associated with adverse birth outcomes, such as preterm birth. Extreme weather…
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Measures against the COVID pandemic did not affect rates of preterm births in three Scandinavian countries
A study from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden combined data from each country’s birth registry and evaluated whether the rate of preterm births was affected by lockdown measures against the COVID19 pandemic. Some prior studies indicated lower rates, but overall the results were contradictive. The new analysis by Laura Oakley and colleagues incorporated a detailed strategy to account for potential confounders and eventually could not confirm a relationship between COVID-related restriction and preterm birth rates.…
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Breastfeeding attitudes in the UK
A study conducted in the UK explored the relationship between a mother’s attitude toward breastfeeding, her personality traits, and her parenting style. After analysing a large sample of mothers, the “high nurturance” parenting style was linked to a mother’s tendency of initiating breastfeeding. Furthermore, the personality did not relate with her breastfeeding attitude, but older mothers tended to feel more positively towards breastfeeding than younger ones. These findings could be relevant for improving future…
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Maintaining human milk bank services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic
Human Milk Bank (HMB) services have been impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. To better understand the impact, a Virtual Communication Network (VCN) was formed to collect data and experiences from HMBs across 35 countries. Every year approx. 800,000 infants receive donor human milk (DHM) worldwide. However, seven pandemic-related vulnerabilities to HMB service provision were identified. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends donor human milk from milk banks (HMB) as the next best…
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Increasing Early Skin-to-Skin in Extremely Low Birthweight Infants
Although the benefits of skin-to-skin care (SSC) for preterm and low birthweight infants are known to the neonatal community, some health centres still struggle with implementation. To increase SSC within the first 72 hours of life among extremely low birthweight (ELBW) infants, a multidimensional approach was chosen at a Level IV university-based regional intensive care nursery (ICN). SSC has many benefits for mothers and infants, especially those born preterm. Previous studies showed that in…
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Parent-administrated oral stimulation in preterm infants
Preterm infants tend to experience difficulties reaching oral feeding, sometimes needing oral stimulation. A study conducted in a children’s hospital in Italy evaluated whether there was a difference in the transition time to full oral feeding between parent-administered and professional-administered premature infant oral motor intervention (PIOMI). The active involvement of parents showed no difference in transition time, and it even offered family-bonding benefits. For preterm infants, reaching oral feeding can be challenging, and a…
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One- and two-year follow-up outcomes of the CARE-ROP study
The CARE-ROP study identified ranibizumab as an effective treatment to control acute retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), an eye disease that affects preterm babies. For 16 preterm children entering the follow-up period, their ophthalmologic- and neurodevelopment was assessed at the one-year and two-year visits post-baseline. The patients’ outcomes of ranibizumab usage are very reassuring regarding long-term safety. Yet, late reactivation of ROP can represent a challenge and calls for regular follow-ups. Retinopathy of prematurity is…
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