In this video Jane describes her research programme which aims to understand the causes of stillbirth (which affects around 4,000 babies per year in the UK) and preterm birth (60,000 babies per year in the UK) and to develop and test methods of prevention.
Background:
Pregnancy is a happy time and safe for most women, but for too many women something goes wrong in pregnancy causing the baby harm. Around 4,000 babies are stillborn in the UK, and a further 60,000 babies are born too early. Our group aims to try and understand what goes wrong in these pregnancies, and to develop and test treatments to improve outcomes. We have previously shown that inflammation is a key process in both preterm and normal labour, and that inflammation can directly cause contractions of the muscle tissue of the womb. We are doing further work to try and find out which parts of the inflammatory cascade are the ones that trigger preterm birth, in the hope that we can detect and stop this process early. We have already shown that some but not all anti-inflammatory treatments can reduce rates of preterm birth in pre-clinical models, although we still don’t fully understand how they might work.
Over 1000 pregnant women in the UK are helping in a study called OPPTIMUM, where we will test whether treatment with the hormone progesterone improves outcomes for babies at risk. Previous studies have shown that pregnant women who take progesterone have reduced rates of preterm birth – this new study will show whether this is accompanied by a reduction in death and disability in their babies. If our study shows benefit, progesterone could rapidly become a safe and effective treatment for women and babies at risk of preterm birth.
In other studies, we are trying to develop treatments to prevent stillbirth. We have already shown that rates of stillbirth are lower in women who ask for induction of labour at or around their due date. In a separate study called AFFIRM, we are evaluating whether women at higher risk of stillbirth because of reduced fetal movement could benefit from induction of labour around the due date and/or more intensive tests if they are still in early pregnancy. This strategy is being introduced and tested progressively in hospitals in Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales over a three year period – at the end of this time we will be able to determine whether it prevents stillbirth, and whether it is associated with any harms, such as increased rates of caesarean section.
Find out more:
MRC Centre for Reproductive Health website
Edinburgh Tommy’s Centre webpage
Jane’s Edinburgh Research Explorer profile
Contact via:
Jane’s departmental staff profile
