Womb News and Research

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The womb is the small, hollow, pear-shaped organ in a woman's pelvis. This is the organ in which a baby grows. Also called uterus.

More than 150 health ministers meet in Ethiopia to discuss maternal mortality

At a U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, "[h]ealth ministers from around the world have agreed that swift action must be taken to reduce the number of women dying during pregnancy and childbirth," the BBC reports. While there appeared to be some agreement "that family planning was the most cost-effective way of [tackling] the problem ... no unanimous declaration was adopted at the Addis Ababa talks," according to the news service (10/26).

27 Oct 2009

Adult male monkeys exposed to cocaine while in the womb have poor impulse control

Adult male monkeys exposed to cocaine while in the womb have poor impulse control and may be more vulnerable to drug abuse than female monkeys, even a decade or more after the exposure, according to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. The findings could lead to a better understanding of human drug abuse.

23 Oct 2009

Exposing pregnant women to chemotherapy does not affect the foetus

Professor Frederic Amant of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (K.U.Leuven) directs research into the treatment of cancer in pregnant women and the consequences of such treatment on foetal development. In her PhD dissertation on chemotherapy during pregnancy, Kristel Van Calsteren presents new scientific discoveries.

23 Oct 2009

Exposure to stress hormones and chemicals while in the womb can affect male fertility

Exposure to a combination of excess stress hormones and chemicals while in the womb could affect a man's fertility in later life, a study suggests.

22 Oct 2009

New technique to treat metabolic disorders in babies while still in the womb

Researchers say a new development in cord blood transplants for inherited metabolic disorders may be curative for some babies who are treated while still in the womb.

20 Oct 2009

Children with low birth weight are at a higher risk of developing asthma later in life, says study

A new study from the medical university Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm shows that children born with low birth weight are at a higher risk of developing asthma later in life. The study, which is published in the journal Pediatrics, is based on data on the incidence of asthma in 10,918 twins from the Swedish Twin Registry.

14 Oct 2009

Higher proportion of American adults prefer to place frozen human embryos with infertile couples

In a recent national public opinion survey, a significantly higher proportion of American adults would choose to place frozen human embryos with infertile couples for the purpose of bearing a child. Interestingly, the survey also revealed that twice as many Americans read or heard about human embryos in connection with stem cell research than in connection with embryo donation or adoption.

14 Oct 2009

Low birth weight children face higher risk of developing asthma later in life

A new study from the medical university Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm shows that children born with low birth weight are at a higher risk of developing asthma later in life.

12 Oct 2009

Researchers identify genes that play a role in the development of endometrial cancer

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have identified two genes believed to play a role in the development of endometrial cancer. These results may eventually lead to better diagnosis and treatment of this increasingly common form of cancer.

12 Oct 2009

More than 1 million babies worldwide born prematurely die in first month, Study says

Each year more than 1 million babies born prematurely - before 37 weeks of development in the womb or within the first month of life - the "March of Dimes said Sunday in the first comprehensive global report on premature births," CNN reports. Nearly 10 percent of total births worldwide, or 12.9 million infants, are preterm, the study found.

6 Oct 2009

Fetal exposure to H1N1 flu can increase risk of heart disease

People exposed to a H1NI strain of influenza A while in utero were significantly more likely to have cardiovascular disease later in life, reveals a new study to be published in Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease on Oct. 1.

1 Oct 2009

New research shows link between maternal tobacco use and psychotic symptoms

Mothers who smoke during pregnancy put their children at greater risk of developing psychotic symptoms in their teenage years.

1 Oct 2009

Latest optical and laser technology in medicine displayed at FiO meeting

From scopes that help premature babies breathe to techniques for imaging live neurons and beating hearts as they develop, the latest optical and laser technology being deployed in medicine and the biosciences will be on display at the Optical Society's (OSA) Annual Meeting, Frontiers in Optics (FiO), which takes place Oct. 11-15 at the Fairmont San Jose Hotel and the Sainte Claire Hotel in San Jose, Calif.

1 Oct 2009

Abbott, Coherex Medical sign multi-year distribution agreement

Salt Lake City-based Coherex Medical, Inc. today announced that it has entered into a multi-year distribution agreement with global health care company Abbott for the Coherex FlatStent™ EF PFO Closure System.

23 Sep 2009

SHP-2 protein molecule encourages placenta growth

Scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have shown that a common biological protein molecule called SHP-2 is crucial for encouraging placenta growth. The research is published today in Endocrinology.

21 Sep 2009

Today's opinions and editorials

Tactically, however, (former Alaska Gov. Sarah) Palin's move was pure brilliance: in but a few keystrokes she synthesized the underlying suspicion at least half of Americans have about a government role in health care delivery and created a visual metaphor from which the Obama White House and congressional Democrats still haven't fully recovered. So would it surprise you that Palin has a legitimate point? Well, sort of (John Edgell, 9/4).

5 Sep 2009

Alcohol is harmful for unborn babies

Learning disabilities, mental health issues and behavior problems are just some of the issues that afflict babies exposed to alcohol in the womb, yet some doctors still tell their patients it is safe to have a drink now and then while pregnant.

5 Sep 2009

Pathogenic microbes can suppress immune system in newborns

Group B Streptococcus (GBS), a bacterial pathogen that causes sepsis and meningitis in newborn infants, is able to shut down immune cell function in order to promote its own survival, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

2 Sep 2009

Michigan newborn blood spot data to help understand causes of celebral palsy

A statewide team of researchers led by a Michigan State University epidemiologist are hoping Michigan's archive of newborn blood spots will help them uncover the causes of cerebral palsy, the most common disabling motor disorder in children with annual health costs of $12 billion.

2 Sep 2009

Researchers demystify polar body analysis reproduction technique

Three out of ten women who undergo polar body diagnosis go on to have a child. The extensive technique of polar body analysis (PBA) is described by researchers in reproductive medicine at Lübeck in an article in the current edition of Deutsches Ärtzeblatt International, in which they present three successful cases and one failure.

31 Aug 2009