Laboratory Equipment

Prematurity, Low Birth Weight Impact Mortality Rates

A study by Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) researchers published today in the journal Pediatrics showed that increasing numbers of premature and other low birth weight infants are the leading cause for the leveling off of infant mortality and neonatal mortality rates in the U.S.

Infant mortality rate is defined as the number of infants who die before their first birthday. Neonatal mortality rate is defined as the number of infants who die before reaching 28 days old.

Read more: Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/04/prematurity-low-birth-weight-impact-mortality-rates

U.N. Calls for Better Family Planning

The U.N.’s top population official wants governments to do more to ensure that women have access to family planning.

The U.N. says the world will add a billion people to its current population of some 7 billion within a decade, further straining the planet’s resources.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2013/01/un-calls-better-family-planning

U.S. Birthrates Down for Fourth Consecutive Year

U.S. births fell for the fourth year in a row, the government reports with experts calling it more proof that the weak economy has continued to dampen enthusiasm for having children. But there may be a silver lining: the decline in 2011 was just 1 percent —not as sharp a fall-off as the 2 to 3 percent drop seen in other recent years.

“It may be that the effect of the recession is slowly coming to an end,” says Carl Haub, a senior demographer with the Population Reference Bureau, a Washington, D.C.-based research organization. Most striking in the new report were steep declines in Hispanic birth rates and a new low in teen births. Hispanics have been disproportionately affected by the flagging economy, experts say, and teen birth rates have been falling for 20 years.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news/2012/10/us-birthrates-down-fourth-consecutive-year

Marijuana Doubles Risk of Premature Birth

A large international study led by Univ. of Adelaide researchers has found that women who use marijuana are at more than double the risk of giving birth to a baby prematurely.

Preterm or premature birth — at least three weeks before a baby’s due date — can result in serious and life-threatening health problems for the baby, and an increased risk of health problems in later life, such as heart disease and diabetes. A study of more than 3,000 pregnant women in Adelaide, Australia and Auckland, New Zealand has detailed the most common risk factors for preterm birth. The results have been published online today in the journal PLoS ONE.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Cannabis-Doubles-Risk-of-Premature-Birth-071912.aspx

Fertility Treatments Heighten Risk of Birth Defects

A Univ. of Adelaide study has identified the risk of major birth defects associated with different types of assisted reproductive technology.

In the most comprehensive study of its kind in the world, researchers from the Univ.’s Robinson Institute have compared the risk of major birth defects for each of the reproductive therapies commonly available internationally, such as: IVF (in vitro fertilization), ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) and ovulation induction. They also compared the risk of birth defects after fresh and frozen embryo transfer.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Fertility-Treatment-Heightens-Risk-of-Birth-Defects-050712.aspx

Nature, Nurture Interact to Increase Birth Defects

Scientists have made a discovery that could help women minimize or even avoid the risk of having a baby born with congenital birth defects. The study is published today in the international journal Cell. The scientists, from universities in Australia, Japan, Canada and the United States, including Arizona State Univ., show for the first time how “nature” and “nurture” interact to increase the severity and likelihood of developing birth defects, including abnormalities in the heart, kidneys, brain, limbs and cranio-facial regions (cleft palate).

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Nature-Nurture-Interaction-Increase-Birth-Defects-040412.aspx

Rising Number of Twins Ups Health Concerns

Women having children at older ages and the growing availability of fertility treatments has led to a marked increase in the birth of twins: In 2009, one in every 30 babies born in the United States was a twin compared with one in every 53 in 1980.

The findings, presented by Michigan State Univ.’s Barbara Luke this week at the 14th Congress of the International Society of Twin Studies in Florence, Italy, have important health implications, including greater morbidity and mortality risks and higher health care costs.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Rising-Number-of-Twins-Ups-Health-Concerns-040412.aspx

mothernaturenetwork:

U.S. approves free birth control for women
Health insurance companies must offer women free birth control and other preventive health care services under new Obama administration rules.