Prevention of premature births

A recent study has identified biomarkers in amniotic fluid that could help lead to earlier diagnosis and treatment of womb infections often to blame for premature births. Nearly 12 per cent of babies in the United States are born prematurely, and more than half of those premature births are caused by infections in the amniotic fluid, which are usually discovered very late to be treated with antibiotics. In a study of rhesus monkeys, researchers identified so-called biomarkers created by infections of the amniotic fluid. Similar biomarkers were found when examining pregnant women who were giving birth prematurely. Babies born prematurely are at increased risk of a variety of health problems and early death.

Researchers from the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, found that biomarkers for infection can be detected in a very short amount of time, within only 12 hours of infection. The outcome of this finding is that a simple test may be developed to detect the presence of these biomarkers; thereby signalling that the pregnant woman has an infection that needs treatment. The testing would be non-invasive and not require insertion of a needle to extract amniotic fluid, as in the genetic testing commonly known as amniocentesis.