Pregnancy News and Research

Latest Pregnancy News and Research

POWER study: Women with diabetes have C-section, complications during pregnancy

Nearly half of women with diabetes prior to pregnancy have a potentially-avoidable C-section and their babies are twice as likely to die as those born to women without diabetes, according to the POWER study.

18 Sep 2010

HRA Pharma, Watson enter licensing agreement for ulipristal acetate emergency contraceptive commercialization

HRA Pharma, a privately-held, European pharmaceutical company that develops healthcare solutions in reproductive health and endocrinology and makes them available worldwide, and Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that they have entered into a licensing agreement for the commercialization of HRA Pharma's next generation emergency contraceptive ulipristal acetate in Canada.

18 Sep 2010

FDA decides to review information on Avastin for advanced HER2-negative breast cancer

Genentech, Inc., a member of the Roche Group, today announced that information submitted by the company to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during the review of the supplemental Biologics License Applications (sBLAs) for Avastin (bevacizumab) for previously untreated (first-line) advanced HER2-negative breast cancer has been deemed a major amendment.

18 Sep 2010

CARE invests $1.8 billion to reduce maternal mortality by 2015

Today the humanitarian organization CARE announced that it will invest $1.8 billion to expand its maternal, newborn and child health programs to more than 30 countries in five years. This investment will deepen CARE's commitment to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) aimed at reducing child and maternal mortality by 2015 and will support the United Nations Secretary General's Global Strategy on Women's and Children's Health, which will be unveiled at next week's MDG Summit.

17 Sep 2010

Diclectin's effectiveness for morning sickness: Report

In the latest issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a group of American and Canadian researchers report on the effectiveness of Diclectin(R) (the delayed-release formulation of doxylamine and vitamin B6) for morning sickness.

17 Sep 2010

Metabolism imbalance increases asthma risk in children: Research

Even children of a healthy weight who have an imbalanced metabolism due to poor diet or exercise may be at increased risk of asthma, according to new research, which challenges the widespread assumption that obesity itself is a risk factor for asthma.

17 Sep 2010

IVF on the rise in Australia: Report

According to a Federal Government report there are now more births via In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment than ever before in Australia. There has been a 45% rise in the number of babies born through IVF and other treatments between 2004-08, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report released today. In 2008 there were 10,509 babies born through fertility treatments in Australia.

16 Sep 2010

Maternal mortality worldwide declines by over one-third since 1990, U.N. report says

Maternal mortality has declined by more than one-third since 1990, according to a report from U.N. agencies released on Wednesday, Agence France-Presse reports. But the agencies warned that the rate of progress was too slow and that the decline still misses the maternal mortality Millennium Development Goal target of a three-quarters cut (9/15).

16 Sep 2010

New sperm freezing technique may be a boon for IVF

A new improved method of freezing and storing sperm for future use in infertility treatment has arrived as a boon for couples wanting babies.

16 Sep 2010

ABCB4 gene causes bad cholesterol to accumulate in blood: Research

Scientists at the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research (SFBR) in San Antonio have found a gene that causes high levels of bad cholesterol to accumulate in the blood as a result of a high-cholesterol diet.

16 Sep 2010

HCHN, ADA to unveil new national program to improve consumers' access to nutrition experts

Today, the Hershey Center for Health and Nutrition joined with the American Dietetic Association to unveil Moderation Nation, a new national program which kicks off by providing complimentary visits with ADA member registered dietitians to consumers, age 18 or over. Moderation Nation seeks to educate people on how to achieve balance in their lives through moderation, both in nutrition and physical activity.

15 Sep 2010

Maternal mortality decreases by 34%, but 1000 still die a day

The number of women dying due to complications during pregnancy and childbirth has decreased by 34% from an estimated 546 000 in 1990 to 358 000 in 2008, according to a new report, Trends in maternal mortality, released by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Bank.

15 Sep 2010

Guardian launches global development website

The Guardian on Tuesday launched a new website that will cover global development issues, such as hunger and infant mortality, according to an introductory note on the site (Bunting, 9/14).

15 Sep 2010

Hormone melatonin improves egg quality in IVF

Poor egg (oocyte) quality is an important cause of female infertility. Low quality eggs may have several problems, for example they may not divide properly, or they may be missing certain chromosomes. Egg quality also declines with age, and certain medical conditions, such as PolyCystic Ovary Syndrome, can lead to poor quality eggs.

15 Sep 2010

Pregnant women should get immunized against flu

There will be only one flu shot needed this year and pregnant women should make sure they're at the front of the line to get it.

15 Sep 2010

Professor Nygren reviews current state of IVF safety

Now a review by the Chair of the international body which collects data on IVF concludes that IVF is generally safe, although he stresses that patients need to be made aware of the slight risks, and that we need to continue to monitor the results of the technique.

14 Sep 2010

Success of assisted reproduction procedures linked to season

The success of an assisted reproduction procedure may depend on the season. This is the finding of new work presented at the World Congress of Fertility and Sterility, in Munich, Germany.

14 Sep 2010

Gilead Sciences announces Quad regimen Phase II clinical trial results for HIV infection treatment

Gilead Sciences, Inc. today announced Phase II clinical trial results showing that its investigational fixed-dose, single-tablet "Quad" regimen of elvitegravir, cobicistat and Truvada (emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) for the treatment of HIV infection maintained a high rate of virologic suppression through 48 weeks, exhibiting antiretroviral activity comparable to that of Atripla(efavirenz 600 mg/emtricitabine 200 mg/ tenofovir disoproxil fumarate 300 mg).

14 Sep 2010

March of Dimes listed on 2010 Working Mother Media's 100 Best Companies

Although it's only been on Working Mother Media's 100 Best Companies for two years, the March of Dimes has a long history of influencing women's ability to balance work and life.

14 Sep 2010

U of A team on cusp of developing simple predictive test for preeclampsia

A team of researchers from the University of Alberta is on the cusp of developing a simple test to accurately predict which women will develop preeclampsia - a condition that affects 4 million women a year and can result in the deaths of both mothers and their babies.

14 Sep 2010