Category Archives: Premature Birth
Progesterone Gel May Prevent Preterm Birth
According to MSNBC, a simple treatment help prevent preterm births by nearly half. A late-stage study of the vaginal gel made by Columbia Laboratories Inc and Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc found hope in preventing premature birth in women with a short cervix. Treating pregnant women participants with the hormone progesterone cut their rate of premature delivery by 45 percent, the researchers said. The study published in the journal Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology will be used to support the companies’ application for marketing approval of the hormone gel. The gel is known by the brand Prochieve. In the study, researchers at the National Institutes of Health and 44 medical centers around the world looked at effects of giving progesterone to women with a short cervix. Researchers suspect that women with a short cervix do not have enough of the hormone, and giving it during pregnancies helps prolong the gestational period. The…
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Posted in Premature Birth Tagged cervix, gel, hormone, premature birth, preterm birth, prevention, Prochieve, progesterone, short cervix Comments Off on Progesterone Gel May Prevent Preterm Birth
Premature Babies Are At Higher Risk of Diabetes, Study Finds
According to MSNBC, diabetes risk may be slightly higher in premature babies. According to a Swedish study, children who spent less time in the womb had a slightly higher risk, less than 1 percent, of developing diabetes at a later time in their life. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 3 of every 25 babies are delivered prematurely. Premature babies face a lot of developmental risks, but diabetes could lead to other risk factors such as high blood pressure. The research team, along with Dr. Casey Crump of Stanford University, used a national prescription database to track the use of diabetes medications by 630,000 people in Sweden born between 1973 and 1979. Roughly 28,000 of those individuals were born premature, the study found. Crump’s team found that 15 out of 100 preemies developed diabetes by the time they were in their twenties and thirties….
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Posted in Premature Birth Tagged diabetes, premature, premature babies, premature birth, research, risk, study Comments Off on Premature Babies Are At Higher Risk of Diabetes, Study Finds
Makena Drug Prices May Increase Premature Births
According to MSNBC, a drug preventing preterm labor is about to have a major price change that could negatively impact pregnant women at risk of going into labor too early. KV Pharmaceutical received government approval to be an exclusive seller of the drug Makena. The change prompted the company to skyrocket the price, from $10 per injection to $1500 per injection. Pregnant women at risk of preterm labor may start the drug early in the pregnancy, which means the total cost during a pregnancy could be as much as $30,000 for Makena shots. The March of Dimes and many medical experts supported KV Pharmaceuticals attempts at getting exclusive government approval. The groups believed it would help with quality and availability of the medication. However, no one suspected that such a major price change would take effect. Some medical experts and patient-safety advocates fear this drastic new price will have a…
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Posted in Premature Birth Tagged cost, drugs, Makena, medicine, preemie, preterm birth, preterm labor, price Comments Off on Makena Drug Prices May Increase Premature Births
