(Press-News.org) The authors say spotting it early could substantially reduce the risk, and this needs to become a cornerstone of safety and effectiveness in antenatal care.
Stillbirth rates in the United Kingdom are among the highest in developed countries. They have often been considered unexplained and unavoidable, and their rates have changed little over the last two decades.
Recently, doctors have found that many stillborn babies fail to reach their growth potential, prompting a renewed focus on what causes fetal growth restriction. So a team of researchers at the West Midlands Perinatal Institute in Birmingham set out to assess the main risk factors associated with stillbirth in a multiethnic population.
Using NHS records, they identified 92,218 normally formed singleton babies, including 389 stillbirths, from 24 weeks of gestation, delivered during 2009-11 (a stillbirth rate of 4.2 per 1,000 births). They then assessed several maternal and fetal risk factors for stillbirth and calculated the proportion of stillbirths that could be potentially avoided if these risks were removed.
These included mother's age, parity (the number of times she had given birth), body mass index, mental health history, pre-existing diabetes, high blood pressure or heart disease, smoking in pregnancy, alcohol consumption, and fetal growth problems.
First, third and subsequent pregnancies were associated with an increased risk of stillbirth compared with second pregnancies, but high maternal age carried no increased risk in this population which excluded congenital anomalies. Ethnicity (African, African-Caribbean, Indian and Pakistani) carried a higher risk, as did deprivation and unemployment of the mother or her partner.
Maternal obesity (BMI of 30 or more), smoking, pre-existing diabetes, a history of mental health problems, and fetal growth restriction were all associated with a significantly increased risk.
As potentially modifiable risk factors, maternal obesity, smoking in pregnancy and fetal growth restriction together accounted for 56% of all stillbirths.
However, the strongest risk factor was fetal growth restriction, which carried a fourfold higher risk of stillbirth compared with normal growth pregnancies. This increased to an eightfold risk if it was not detected during pregnancy, accounting for 32% of all stillbirths in the study.
Yet the authors point out that the presence of fetal growth restriction is currently missed in most pregnancies.
They estimate that 71 stillbirths in their study population could have been avoided through better antenatal recognition. Extrapolated to the UK population, this would represent 600 fewer stillbirths per year.
"Our study shows that while there are several risk factors for stillbirth that can be ascertained from the outset of pregnancy, the single largest factor is fetal growth restriction, which is currently not well predicted and not recognised antenatally in most pregnancies," say the authors. "Most normally formed singleton stillbirths are potentially avoidable … and preventive strategies need to focus on improving antenatal detection," they conclude.
In an accompanying editorial, two experts from the University of Auckland say this study adds "important new insights" about modifiable risk factors for stillbirth, but that efforts to improve detection of fetal growth restriction must be intensified.
### END
Spotting fetal growth problems early could cut UK stillbirths by 600 a year
Detection before birth must become a cornerstone of antenatal care
2013-01-25
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Scientists discover how epigenetic information could be inherited
2013-01-25
New research reveals a potential way for how parents' experiences could be passed to their offspring's genes. The research was published today, 25 January, in the journal Science.
Epigenetics is a system that turns our genes on and off. The process works by chemical tags, known as epigenetic marks, attaching to DNA and telling a cell to either use or ignore a particular gene.
The most common epigenetic mark is a methyl group. When these groups fasten to DNA through a process called methylation they block the attachment of proteins which normally turn the genes on. ...
Researchers discover new mutations driving malignant melanoma
2013-01-25
BOSTON—Two new mutations that collectively occur in 71 percent of malignant melanoma tumors have been discovered in what scientists call the "dark matter" of the cancer genome, where cancer-related mutations haven't been previously found.
Reporting their findings in the Jan. 24 issue of Science Express, the researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Broad Institute said the highly "recurrent" mutations – occurring in the tumors of many people – may be the most common mutations in melanoma cells found to date.
The researchers said these cancer-associated ...
Red explosions: The secret life of binary stars is revealed
2013-01-25
(Edmonton) A University of Alberta professor has revealed the workings of a celestial event involving binary stars that results in an explosion so powerful it ranks close to Supernovae in luminosity.
Astrophysicists have long debated about what happens when binary stars, two stars that orbit one another, come together in a common envelope.
When this dramatic cannibalizing event ends there are two possible outcomes; the two stars merge into a single star or an initial binary transforms in an exotic short-period one.
The event is believed to take anywhere from a dozen ...
Gene sequencing project mines data once considered 'junk' for clues about cancer
2013-01-25
(MEMPHIS, Tenn. – January 24, 2013) Genome sequencing data once regarded as junk is now being used to gain important clues to help understand disease. The latest example comes from the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital – Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project, where scientists have developed an approach to mine the repetitive segments of DNA at the ends of chromosomes for insights into cancer.
These segments, known as telomeres, had previously been ignored in next-generation sequencing efforts. That is because their repetitive nature meant that the ...
Newly discovered 'scarecrow' gene might trigger big boost in food production
2013-01-25
ITHACA, N.Y. – With projections of 9.5 billion people by 2050, humanity faces the challenge of feeding modern diets to additional mouths while using the same amounts of water, fertilizer and arable land as today.
Cornell University researchers have taken a leap toward meeting those needs by discovering a gene that could lead to new varieties of staple crops with 50 percent higher yields.
The gene, called Scarecrow, is the first discovered to control a special leaf structure, known as Kranz anatomy, which leads to more efficient photosynthesis. Plants photosynthesize ...
The storm that never was: Why the weatherman is often wrong
2013-01-25
Have you ever woken up to a sunny forecast only to get soaked on your way to the office? On days like that it's easy to blame the weatherman.
But BYU mechanical engineering professor Julie Crockett doesn't get mad at meteorologists. She understands something that very few people know: it's not the weatherman's fault he's wrong so often.
According to Crockett, forecasters make mistakes because the models they use for predicting weather can't accurately track highly influential elements called internal waves.
Atmospheric internal waves are waves that propagate between ...
Prenatal inflammation linked to autism risk
2013-01-25
Maternal inflammation during early pregnancy may be related to an increased risk of autism in children, according to new findings supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health. Researchers found this in children of mothers with elevated C-reactive protein (CRP), a well-established marker of systemic inflammation.
The risk of autism among children in the study was increased by 43 percent among mothers with CRP levels in the top 20th percentile, and by 80 percent for maternal CRP in the top 10th ...
Virginia Tech computer scientists develop new way to study molecular networks
2013-01-25
In biology, molecules can have multi-way interactions within cells, and until recently, computational analysis of these links has been "incomplete," according to T. M. Murali, associate professor of computer science in the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech.
His group authored an article on their new approach to address these shortcomings, titled "Reverse Engineering Molecular Hypergraphs," that received the Best Paper Award at the recent 2012 ACM Conference on Bioinformatics, Computational Biology and Biomedicine.
Intricate networks of connections among molecules ...
'Cool' kids in middle school bully more, UCLA psychologists report
2013-01-25
Bullying, whether it's physical aggression or spreading rumors, boosts the social status and popularity of middle school students, according to a new UCLA psychology study that has implications for programs aimed at combatting school bullying. In addition, students already considered popular engage in these forms of bullying, the researchers found.
The psychologists studied 1,895 ethnically diverse students from 99 classes at 11 Los Angeles middle schools. They conducted surveys at three points: during the spring of seventh grade, the fall of eighth grade and the spring ...
A blend of soy and dairy proteins promotes muscle protein synthesis when consumed after exercise
2013-01-25
ST. LOUIS, Jan. 24, 2013 – A new study published in The Journal of Nutrition demonstrates the benefits of consuming a protein blend for muscle protein synthesis after exercise. This study is a first-of-its-kind, conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch, and utilizes the proteins from soy, whey and casein consumed after an acute bout of resistance exercise. These proteins have complementary amino acid profiles and different digestion rates (amino acid release profiles). The results demonstrate prolonged delivery of amino acids to muscles and ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Being physically active, even just a couple of days a week, may be key to better health
High-fat diet promote breast cancer metastasis in animal models
A router for photons
Nurses and AI collaborate to save lives, reduce hospital stays
Multi-resistance in bacteria predicted by AI model
Tinker Tots: A citizen science project to explore ethical dilemmas in embryo selection
Sensing sickness
Cost to build multifamily housing in California more than twice as high as in Texas
Program takes aim at drinking, unsafe sex, and sexual assault on college campuses
Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.
Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis
KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision
Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response
Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid
Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia
Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients
Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years
Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations
New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients
New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans
Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production
New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination
Study examines lactation in critically ill patients
UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award
Doubling down on metasurfaces
New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders
Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana
PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation
ICRAFT breakthrough: Unlocking A20’s dual role in cancer immunotherapy
How VR technology is changing the game for Alzheimer’s disease
[Press-News.org] Spotting fetal growth problems early could cut UK stillbirths by 600 a yearDetection before birth must become a cornerstone of antenatal care