Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

MicroPhage's new platform for rapid identification of bacterial infections

MicroPhage announced today the launch of its multi-site clinical trial to support a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) premarket notification [510(k)]. The platform has been developed to rapidly identify bacterial infections and determine antibiotic susceptibility or resistance to aid physicians in antibiotic management.

21 Aug 2009

Expectant mothers cautioned against using home fetal Doppler devices

Mums-to-be are being advised not to use personal monitors (Doppler devices) to listen to their baby's heartbeat at home over fears that they may lead to delays in seeking help for reduced fetal movements.

21 Aug 2009

Coping with burn injuries

More than half a million Americans are treated for burn injuries every year, but many do not have the specific skills necessary to cope with the experience of living with a burn injury after they leave the hospital.

20 Aug 2009

National Institute on Drug Abuse funds study on development of prenatally cocaine-exposed children

Teen years are filled with experimenting. Sometimes that means trying some risky behaviors.

20 Aug 2009

InterMune receives $20 million event payment from Roche for initiating the Phase 2b trial of RG7227/ ITMN-191

Roche (SIX: ROG.VX; RO.S, OTCQX: RHHBY) and InterMune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ITMN) today announced that the first patient has been dosed in a Phase 2b study evaluating the hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease inhibitor, RG7227/ ITMN-191, in combination with PEGASYS(R) (pegylated interferon alfa-2a) and COPEGUS(R) (ribavirin). The study, to be conducted at 45 sites globally, will further define the safety and efficacy profile of RG7227/ ITMN-191, for a treatment duration of up to 24 weeks. Approximately 300 treatment-naive patients chronically infected with HCV genotype 1 - the most difficult to treat form of the virus - will participate.

20 Aug 2009

Arizona finalizes health care contract

CIGNA HealthCare announced today that it is one of four companies to have been awarded a contract to provide medical benefits to Arizona's state employees, university employees and retirees. The contract becomes effective October 1, 2009.

20 Aug 2009

IVF treatment not to be combined with alternative therapies

Women who are desperately trying to get pregnant might want to avoid complementary and alternative medicine. The common belief is that it won't hurt to try alternative fertility treatments before reverting to in vitro fertilization (IVF). But a new study from Denmark finds that the success of IVF treatment is 30% lower among women who have used alternative medicine.

19 Aug 2009

Genentech announces Phase III study results for Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with chemo in HER2-negative breast cancer

Genentech, Inc. today announced that a Phase III study (RIBBON 2) of Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with chemotherapy increased the time women with metastatic HER2-negative breast cancer whose initial chemotherapy had stopped working lived without the disease worsening (progression-free survival or PFS), compared to chemotherapy alone.

18 Aug 2009

FDA approves Extavia for multiple sclerosis

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Extavia(R) (interferon beta-1b), the first in a new planned portfolio of multiple sclerosis (MS) medicines from Novartis to help patients manage this devastating disease.

17 Aug 2009

Mother's immune system may block fetal treatments for blood diseases

Pediatric researchers have resolved an apparent contradiction in the field of prenatal cell transplantation - a medical approach that holds future promise in correcting sickle cell disease and other serious congenital blood disorders. In a new study in animals, the researchers showed that the mother's immune response interferes with the offspring's earlier ability to tolerate transplanted donor cells.

17 Aug 2009

Seizures during pregnancy linked to pre-term, small or low-birth-weight babies

Women with epilepsy who have seizures during pregnancy appear more likely to give birth to pre-term, small or low-birth-weight babies than women without epilepsy, according to a report in the August issue of Archives of Neurology.

10 Aug 2009

Obesity No. 1 concern for children in the United States

Public concern about childhood obesity is on the rise and it continues to outrank all other health problems as the No. 1 concern for children in the United States.

10 Aug 2009

Cooperation between faith-based organizations and UNFPA critical to maternal health, say groups

Partnerships between faith-based organizations and UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, are critical to enhancing efforts to reduce maternal deaths and end violence against women.

7 Aug 2009

Huge cost of scaling up entire health system in Sub-Saharan Africa

Hiring the nearly 800,000 workers needed to eliminate the staggering shortage of health care professionals in sub-Saharan Africa by 2015 will cost $2.6 billion a year, or 2.5 times the annual funds currently allocated for health worker wages in the region, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and collaborators from the World Health Organization (WHO) and The World Bank.

6 Aug 2009

Importance of increased funding for molecular diagnostics

On July 9, 2009, the Society for Women’s Health Research convened experts on Capitol Hill to educate lawmakers on the importance of increased funding for new medical tests, called molecular diagnostics.

6 Aug 2009

In Kenya, Clinton calls on African leaders to promote good governance, women's rights

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday in Kenya "re-affirmed the new U.S. administration's commitment towards expanding its partnership with African countries, expressing optimism in the continent's long-term potential for growth and development," VOA News reports.

5 Aug 2009

Guardian examines U.K. offer to help provide free healthcare in 'world's poorest countries'

The Guardian examines British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's offer "to help some of the world's poorest countries to make healthcare free – starting with pregnant women and children – in a push to widen access to doctors across Africa and Asia."

4 Aug 2009

Exercise offers many benefits during pregnancy

Physicians should recommend low to moderate levels of exercise to their pregnant patients, even if they have not exercised prior to pregnancy, states a report published in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS).

3 Aug 2009

Discovery of unique 'DNA signature' in human sperm - unlocks egg's fertility

Drs David Miller and David Iles from the University of Leeds, in collaboration with Dr Martin Brinkworth at the University of Bradford, have found that sperm writes a DNA signature that can only be recognised by an egg from the same species. This enables fertilisation and may even explain how a species develops its own unique genetic identity.

3 Aug 2009

Ethical ramifications of H1N1 vaccine priority groups

Pregnant women are among the groups that should receive H1N1 (swine) flu vaccinations this fall, according to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices panel whose recommendations are generally accepted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

31 Jul 2009