Active clinical trials for "Birth Weight"

In the U.S., rates of preterm birth and low birth weight have increased over the past 30 years. Poor birth outcomes are especially high among racial/ethnic minority populations. Maternal stress is an important factor that can lead to negative birth outcomes. Thus, programs that reduce stress during pregnancy could improve birth outcomes. Initial pilot work tested a mindfulness-based approach to stress reduction during pregnancy. Women in the pilot study had lower stress and improved coping after the program. For the current study, mindfulness is added to an existing prenatal healthcare program called CenteringPregnancy (CP). CP provides prenatal care through 10 group sessions. This study compares CP with a version of CP infused with mindfulness skills training. Effects of the two versions of CP on psychological stress and coping, stress hormones, and birth outcomes will be tested. Data will be collected from participants three times: twice during pregnancy and once after birth. Medical records will provide data on birth outcomes and other health factors. The study will provide initial information about a mind-body program to reduce stress and improve birth outcomes. Data from the study will inform the development of an R01 proposal for a larger study. The study will also help advance the long term goal of reducing health disparities.

Mortality and incidence of severe complications is still high among extremely premature infants. Common causes of severe complications in this population are poor nutrition, necrotizing enterocolitis, and severe infections. Feeding intolerance is also a common problem resulting in prolonged need for intravenous lines and poor nutrition. The aim of the study is to evaluate whether supplementation with the probiotic bacterium Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 daily to premature infants with extremely low birth weight increases feeding tolerance to breast milk and thereby improves nutrition, increases growth and reduces serious complications and mortality in this population. Beyond this, possible mechanisms underlying these effects will be analyzed in stool, breast milk and blood samples.

Probiotics are favorable microorganisms that regulate the flora of the gastrointestinal system and stimulate the immune system. Necrotizing enterocolitis incidence is 10-25% in newborn infants whose birth weights are < 1500 g. Although bifidobacterium and other lactobacilli spp. have been used to reduce the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis in clinical trials, Lactobacillus reuteri has not been used in the prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis in very low birth weight infants yet. The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of orally administered Lactobacillus reuteri in reducing the incidence and severity of necrotizing enterocolitis in very low birth weight infants.

Probiotics are favorable microorganisms that regulate the flora of the gastrointestinal system and stimulate the immune system. Lactobacillus reuteri was shown to reduce candida colonization. The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of prophylactic Lactobacillus reuteri in reducing the candida colonization and infection in very low birth weight infants.

This study will test the effectiveness of breast milk expression discharge instructions in digital video disc (DVD) format for home use by mothers of very low birth weight infants on the dose and duration of mother's breast milk feeding in their infants compared to breast milk expression discharge instructions in printed format. The investigators hypothesize that infants whose mothers receive breast milk expression discharge instructions via DVD will receive a larger dose of maternal breast milk and for longer duration during the initial neonatal intensive care unit hospitalization than infants whose mothers receive discharge instructions in printed format.

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of zinc and/or vitamin A supplementation in reducing the risk of placental malaria and its associated adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Timely screening and management of modifiable conditions can reduce preterm births, yet providing effective prenatal risk management systems to meet the unique needs of medically underserved populations is complex. If the proposed system proves to be effective in reducing preterm births it can improve maternal and child quality of life as well as reduce the economic burden of preterm births in the U.S.

Low birth weight (LBW; birth weight<2,500g) is the most important determinant of mortality and morbidity in the neonatal period. It is also a very important factor in predicting nutritional status, health and development in childhood. It even influences health in adult life, contributing to the vicious cycle of disease and poverty. The high rate LBW in DCs represents therefore a major public health problem. Maternal chronic energy deficiency is assumed to be a major determinant of the problem in these countries along with prenatal micronutrient deficiencies. A large body of recent evidence points out that multiple micronutrient supplementation as such has only a modest beneficial effect on fetal growth. Therefore, it is expected that providing these multiple micronutrients in a food supplement covering energy requirement needs of pregnant women will have an effect of public health importance on children's health. This study has the objective of improving children's health by improving birth outcome and fetal growth through the provision of a food supplement enriched in multimicronutrients during pregnancy. This research includes 2 constituents: a pilot phase during which dietary behavior of pregnant women is assessed as a component for optimal fetal growth a randomized, placebo-controlled trial, including 1300 pregnant women aimed at testing 2 hypotheses: supplementing pregnant women with a food supplement containing a multivitamin-minerals mix will improve fetal growth; improved fetal growth will have a positive effect on health and growth during infancy. The trial is planned in Hounde District, Burkina Faso, in collaboration with Centre Muraz, which plays a leader role in research and services providing at the district level and in policy recommendations at the national level. This will ensure that the study findings are incorporated into on-going district programs with possible replication at the national level. The research lasts from February 2006 to August 2009.

The purpose of this community-based randomized trial is to examine whether a daily antenatal and postnatal multiple micronutrient supplement given to women will enhance newborn and infant survival and health and other birth outcomes in a rural setting in northwestern Bangladesh.

This study tested whether Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) teams trained in benchmarking -- comparing care practices between different NICUs to see which practices prevent bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) -- and quality improvement would change practices and improve rates of survival without BPD in inborn neonates with birth weights of <1250 grams. Benchmarking is a method involving detailed comparisons of processes between similar organizations. For this study, three NRN centers with the lowest rates of BPD have been identified as Benchmark centers. During a 6-month pre-intervention period, details of care practices and management style at these centers were carefully assessed. Based on practices at these Benchmarking sites, we developed a quality improvement program. For this study, 14 other NRN sites were randomized to either implement the benchmarking intervention (intervention sites) or continue with their usual care practices (control sites). After the 1-year intervention period, we compared changes in the rate of survival without BPD at 36 weeks corrected age between the intervention and control sites.