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21 Aug
Smoking Just 1-2 Cigarettes a Day Before or During Pregnancy Is a Danger to Newborn Health, Study Finds
A new study suggests there is no safe time or level for smoking cigarettes before or during pregnancy.
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Illinois Study Finds Steep Rise in Serious Complications of Pregnancy
- Carole Tanzer Miller HealthDay Reporter
- November 25, 2024
- Full Page
MONDAY, Nov. 25, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Chronic health problems like high blood pressure, gestational diabetes and obesity have fueled a troubling rise in maternal healt...
Being Born Preterm Tied to Lifelong Harms in Employment, Education
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- November 8, 2024
- Full Page
Babies born preterm face a life of lowered prospects, a new study warns.
Adults who were preemies are less likely to achieve higher education or snag a high-paying job, researchers reported Nov. 6 in the journal ...
Having a Preemie Baby Can Harm Job Prospects, Income
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- October 28, 2024
- Full Page
The health problems of preemie babies cause untold heartache for new parents.
But these families also face a strained financial future, a new study finds.
About 30% of parents with a very low birth weight baby, under 3.3 pounds, have had to make serious decisions a...
U.S. Preterm Births Are on the Rise
- Carole Tanzer Miller HealthDay Reporter
- September 27, 2024
- Full Page
Over the past decade, rates of preterm birth in the United States jumped more than 10%, a new study of more than 5 million births shows.
The rise dovetailed with an increase in some factors that make an early delivery more likely, including rates of
Not Born Equal: Preemie Babies Fall Into 3 Risk Categories
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- August 14, 2024
- Full Page
Not all babies born prematurely will suffer long-term developmental problems, a new study finds.
Preemies tend to fall into three risk categories, with about one in five (20%) scoring above average on standard cognitive tests, researchers reported Aug. 13 in the journal ...
Blood Test Can Predict a Dangerous Lung Issue for Preemie Babies
- August 12, 2024
- Full Page
Simantha Nation’s son, Atticus, struggled to breathe from his very first gasp for air.
Born very preterm at 26 weeks’ gestation, Atticus was rushed to the NICU, where he was intubated and connected to a ventilator.
The first time Nation saw her son, h...
Obesity May Be Even Less Healthy If Child Was Born Underweight
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- June 26, 2024
- Full Page
Low-birth-weight newborns have a higher risk of health complications if they become obese as children, a new study has found.
Obese children who were low-birth-weight babies have a higher risk of insulin resistance, fatty liver and other health problems, researchers foun...
Could Moms of Low-Birth-Weight Babies Face Higher Dementia Risk Later?
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- June 13, 2024
- Full Page
Women who deliver low-birth-weight babies could be more likely to have memory and thinking problems later in life, a new study warns.
As seniors, these women had brain test scores that indicated one to two years of additional aging in their memory and thinking skills, co...
Women in the Military at Risk for Low-Weight Babies
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- April 23, 2024
- Full Page
Active military service appears to increase a woman's risk of having a low birthweight baby, a new review finds.
Nearly two-thirds of studies (63%) conclude that women on active service could be at higher risk of having a baby with low birth weight, researchers reported ...
Lupus, Type 1 Diabetes Linked to Pregnancy Complications
- Ernie Mundell and Carole Tanzer Miller HealthDay Reporters
- March 20, 2024
- Full Page
People with autoimmune disorders such as lupus, type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis tend to have fewer children, and women with this class of illnesses often have higher risks for complications of pregnancy, new research shows.
Researchers in Finland compared pregna...
A Warming World May Mean More Premature Births
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- February 27, 2024
- Full Page
Surging temperatures caused by climate change could lead to more premature births worldwide, a new study reports.
Researchers found a strong association between exposure to extreme heat during the third trimester of pregnancy and the risk of premature delivery.
"Hi...
Study Finds No Link Between Premature Birth, Autism
- Carole Tanzer Miller HealthDay Reporter
- February 14, 2024
- Full Page
There is no significant link between premature birth and autism, new research out of Israel suggests.
Findings from the study of more than 100,000 deliveries were presented Tuesday at a meeting of the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine in National Harbor, Md.
...
Plastics Chemicals Tied to Preemie Births Add Billions in Medical Costs
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- February 7, 2024
- Full Page
Preterm births linked to "hormone-disruptor"chemicals in plastics cost the U.S. health care system billions of dollars, a new study claims.
Daily exposure to phthalates -- chemicals used to manufacture plastics -- might be tied to nearly 56,000 preterm births in the Unit...
Ultrasound Could Spot Placenta Issues Tied to Low Birth Weight
- Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
- February 6, 2024
- Full Page
Using ultrasound to measure blood flow in the placenta and the fetus could help spot issues tied to low birth weight, researchers report.
As the Dutch investigators explained, about 10% of fetuses are determined to be "small for gestational age" after ultrasound examinat...
Flame Retardant Chemicals Show Links to Preterm Birth
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- January 30, 2024
- Full Page
Pregnant women exposed to flame-retardant chemicals could face an increased risk of premature birth, a new study warns.
Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are commonly used as flame retardants in products like furniture, baby items, electronics, clothes and building materials...
Being Born Even a Bit Early Could Harm a Child's Development
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- January 26, 2024
- Full Page
Babies born even slightly early have a higher long-term risk of developmental difficulties that could affect their behavior and learning ability, a new study finds.
Infants born moderately (32-33 weeks) or late preterm (34-36 weeks) are more likely to have epilepsy or pr...
High-Tech Ultrasound Might Predict Risk for Premature Delivery
- Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
- January 25, 2024
- Full Page
Ultrasound scans that pick up "microstructural" changes in a woman's cervix could point to her having a higher risk for preterm birth, researchers report.
The scans were done as early as week 23 of pregnancy and could help assess risks for "preemie" delivery, even among ...
Immediate Body Contact With Parents Helps Preemie Newborns Thrive
- Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
- December 4, 2023
- Full Page
Having mom or dad hold their preemie baby against their own skin immediately after birth appears to help the infants in their development months later, new research shows.
In many neonatal wards, babies born prematurely are transferred soon after delivery to an incubator...
COVID Vaccines Curbed Pandemic-Linked Surge in Preemie Births
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- November 28, 2023
- Full Page
COVID vaccines saved the lives and health of countless babies by preventing their premature births, a new study shows.
COVID-19 initially caused an alarming surge in premature birth rates, but those returned to pre-pandemic levels following the introduction of vaccines, ...
Cannabis Use During Pregnancy Ups Risk of Premature Birth, Low Birth Weight Babies
- Robin Foster HealthDay Reporter
- November 16, 2023
- Full Page
THURSDAY, Nov. 16, 2023 (Healthday News) -- Using cannabis during pregnancy may not be as benign as some think, with a new review showing it raises the risk for both premature and low birth weight newborns.
In turn, that raised the chances of these infants winding up in ...
Waiting to Clamp Umbilical Cord May Save Preemies' Lives
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- November 15, 2023
- Full Page
The timing of a simple, standard part of childbirth could mean the difference between life and death for premature babies, a pair of new evidence reviews have concluded.
Preemies whose umbilical cords are clamped 30 seconds to two minutes after birth are less likely to d...
Car Exhaust Could Harm a Woman's Pregnancy
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- October 16, 2023
- Full Page
Air pollution from heavy traffic may be driving pregnancy complications and health concerns for infants.
Researchers who matched more than 60,000 birth records with air-monitoring data found that pregnant patients living in an urban area with elevated levels of nitrogen ...
Coffee Won't Raise Preemie Birth Risk, But Smoking Certainly Will: Study
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- September 28, 2023
- Full Page
Smoking during pregnancy is a significant risk factor for premature births, but drinking coffee is not, new research suggests.
Women who smoked during pregnancy were 2.6 times more likely to give birth prematurely compared to nonsmokers, a risk that was double that of pr...
Future of 'Artificial Wombs' for Human Preemies to Be Weighed by FDA Advisors
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- September 19, 2023
- Full Page
Advisors to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will weigh the possibilities and parameters of experiments with artificial wombs for premature human babies.
Scientists have already had some success with the concept in animals.
For Preemie Babies, Preschool Plus Parenting Can Spell Academic Success
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- September 1, 2023
- Full Page
Infants born three to six weeks early -- considered late preterm -- are at risk for learning problems, but they can be overcome, researchers say.
Preschool attendance and sensitive parenting can help them bridge the gap academically, a new study shows.
"Our findin...
Some Newborns Need Methadone Post-Surgery, But Use Brings Problems
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- August 9, 2023
- Full Page
About 1 in 5 newborns hospitalized for surgery to treat a life-threatening bowel infection are given opioids for pain relief and some then need methadone to wean off the addictive drugs.
But there is wide variability in use of opioids after surgery in infants, and babies...
Rate of Preterm Births Is Higher for Black Americans
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- August 7, 2023
- Full Page
Black women have significantly more preterm births than white women do, and though almost a third of these extra cases can be explained by heart issues and social factors, the rest remain a mystery.
However, targeting those known factors could improve birth outcomes, a n...
Steroids That Can Save Preemie Babies May Have Health Downsides
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- August 4, 2023
- Full Page
Steroids are often unnecessarily prescribed to pregnant women thought to be at risk of preterm birth, a new evidence review contends.
As a result, millions of babies are needlessly exposed to long-term health problems associated with steroid use in gestation, such as inc...
Dad's Mental Illness Raises Risk of Premature Birth
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- July 21, 2023
- Full Page
It's not only a mother's mental health that is tied to the risk for preterm birth -- the father's matters, too.
New research found that the risk of premature birth was higher for infants whose mothers or fathers had a psychiatric diagnosis than for those whose parents di...
Dangerous Infections in 'Preemie' Babies May Begin in the Gut
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- May 4, 2023
- Full Page
About half of extremely preterm babies have at least one life-threatening bacterial infection in their bloodstream after 72 hours of life.
Now, new research points to the babies' own gut microbiomes as the source.
Knowing that the most common bacteria in bloodstr...
FDA Withdraws Approval of Drug Meant to Prevent Preterm Births
- Robin Foster HealthDay Reporter
- April 6, 2023
- Full Page
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday formally withdrew its approval of a drug that was meant to prevent preterm births.
Sold as Makena, the drug was first approved in 2011 under the FDA's accelerated approval program, but subsequent research questioned the m...
Loud Incubators Might Damage Preemie Babies' Hearing
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- March 27, 2023
- Full Page
While an incubator can save the life of a premature baby, it may be contributing to hearing loss in these vulnerable infants.
A new study published March 27 in Frontiers in Pediatrics assessed the sounds in the neonatal intensive care unit, evaluating the impact...
Fewer Tiny Newborns Are Dying of Intestinal Necrosis, But Many Tragedies Remain
- Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter
- March 9, 2023
- Full Page
Jennifer Canvasser had never heard of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) before she gave birth to twins three months prematurely in 2011, but she has since devoted her life to raising awareness about this potentially fatal intestinal disease.
Her son Micah developed NEC whe...
Preterm Birth Drug Pulled From Market Over Lack of Effectiveness
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- March 8, 2023
- Full Page
Pregnant women will no longer have any drug to prevent preterm birth after the maker of the only available treatment announced Tuesday that it will withdraw its product, Makena, from the market.
Covis Pharma Group's decision follows a U.S. Food and Drug Administration ad...
COVID Lockdowns Linked to Decline in Premature Births
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- March 2, 2023
- Full Page
Premature births dropped during lockdowns in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A groundbreaking study, which included a group of mostly high-income countries -- including the Unite...
Complication Risks Rise in Pregnancies Among the Very Young
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- February 17, 2023
- Full Page
Pregnant girls who are especially young, those only 10 to 15 years old, face increased risks for complications that include preeclampsia and C-section, according to new research.
Investigators from University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas also found that...
Wildfire Smoke May Send Pregnant Women Into Premature Labor
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- February 13, 2023
- Full Page
Exposure to wildfire smoke can increase the risk of premature birth, new research suggests.
For the study, the researchers reviewed birth certificates and hospital delivery data for more than 2.5 million pregnant women in California from 2007 to 2012, and used satellite ...
Pregnancy Complications Could Mean Lifelong Heart Risks for Women
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- February 2, 2023
- Full Page
Major pregnancy complications, such as preeclampsia and preterm birth, should be recognized as lifelong risk factors for women's heart disease, new research suggests.
Women who experience any of the five major pregnancy complications have an increased risk of ischemic...
Preterm Birth Tied to Lower IQs, Poorer School Grades
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- January 19, 2023
- Full Page
By the time they're teenagers, babies born prematurely may be getting poorer school grades than their non-preemie peers.
Researchers found that babies born before 34 weeks of pregnancy had lower scores on math and language tests during their teen years compared to kids b...
Youngest Kids in Class More Likely to Get Prescribed ADHD Meds
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- December 16, 2022
- Full Page
Kids who are the youngest in their grade may be overmedicated for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a Norwegian researcher who studied prescribing data.
Those who were also born preterm were at particular risk of being overmedicated, said
States That Restrict Abortions Have More Maternal, Infant Deaths
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- December 14, 2022
- Full Page
In U.S. states with more restrictive abortion policies, rates of pregnant women, new mothers and infants dying were higher, a new report finds.
Formula Feeding Raises Odds for Anemia in Very 'Preemie' Babies
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- December 13, 2022
- Full Page
Babies born prematurely who are fed formula may need iron supplementation like their breastfed counterparts, new research suggests.
"Just because a baby is on iron-rich formula, we should not assume all of their iron needs are being met, since iron from the formula may ...
U.S. Premature Births Hit Highs Not Seen in 15 Years
- Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
- November 17, 2022
- Full Page
More than 1 in every 10 births in the United States now occur prematurely, and the number of these more dangerous deliveries jumped by 4% during 2021, a new report from the March of Dimes shows.
The premature birth rate has now reached 10.5% of all births -- the highest ...
Hormonal Treatment in Pregnancy Won't Lower Odds for Preterm Birth
- Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
- November 2, 2022
- Full Page
A hormone therapy commonly used to prevent preterm births probably isn't effective, a new study reports.
Doctors have been prescribing vaginal progesterone treatments to help at-risk pregnant women delay delivery for as long as possible, researchers said.
But a new...
Stress + Air Pollution a Bad Combo in Pregnancy: Study
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- October 31, 2022
- Full Page
Protecting pregnant women from air pollution may improve the birth weight of their babies, a new study suggests.
This is especially important for stressed-out mothers who live in neighborhoods burdened by poor air quality.
FDA Panel Votes for Removal of Drug Meant to Prevent Preterm Births
- Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- October 19, 2022
- Full Page
A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory committee on Wednesday voted to recommend that a controversial drug meant to prevent premature births be pulled from the market.
FDA, Company Square Off in Hearing Over Drug Meant to Prevent Preterm Births
- Cara Murez
- October 17, 2022
- Full Page
In a three-day hearing that began Monday, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory committee will give the maker of a drug meant to prevent premature births a chance to show why its drug should not be pulled off the market.
Anxiety During Pregnancy Could Mean Earlier Delivery
- By Sydney Murphy HealthDay Reporter
- September 27, 2022
- Full Page
Too much anxiety isn't good for anyone, but a new study suggests it is particularly perilous for pregnant women because it can raise the chances of their ...
Kids Born Premature Lag in Elementary School, But Most Catch Up Later
- By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- August 18, 2022
- Full Page
While babies born prematurely may lag behind their elementary school peers, they eventually catch up, British researchers report.
By the end of high school, only the kids born before 32 weeks of gestation were continuing to struggle, according to a new study published on...
Premature Birth Tied to Higher Risk for ADHD
- By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
- August 16, 2022
- Full Page
Children born a little early -- before 39 weeks of pregnancy -- are more likely to have symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), new research suggests.
While birth before 37 weeks' gestation has known links to hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattentio...