Clinical Research Directory

Improving Preterm Kidney Outcomes With Caffeine

This study is being done to see if additional caffeine citrate (20 milligrams per kilogram IV bolus) helps babies with low kidney oxygenation already being treated with caffeine citrate (20 milligrams per kilogram IV bolus on day of life (DOL) 1 followed by 8 milligrams per kilogram daily maintenance). The investigators hypothesize that additional caffeine will improve kidney oxygen levels, while not causing any brain injury, and may reduce rates of acute kidney injury compared to placebo. This study will take place in preterm babies born less than 30 weeks gestational age, with the intervention occurring between greater than 48 hours of age until DOL 14 and outcomes tracked until neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) discharge.

Motor-voice Assessment in Infants (MAMI)

The goal of this observational study is to discover features of normal and disordered motor-voice profiles that are biobehavioral markers of physical disability in infants.. The main questions it aims to answer are: Identify voice factors among infants with newborn-detectable risk. Identify association between individual characteristics (Gestational age at birth, global function, motor-function) and voice factors. Examine unique features of voice production that are present in infants with high-risk for Cerebral Palsy (CP). Participants will be asked to upload a 3-minute videos of their child at term-age, 3.5-, and 9-months of age. At the 3.5-month and 9-month time point parents can choose to attend an optional in-person assessment with their child.

Admission to Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) Ward and Maternal Postpartum Depression

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if extended admission to the Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) ward helps to prevent postpartum depression in mothers of low birthweight infants in a low-resource setting whose newborns were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) more than standard of care KMC. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Does longer KMC decrease the incidence of postpartum depression in mothers of low birthweight infants in a low-resource setting? * Does longer KMC improve neurodevelopmental outcomes of low birthweight infants at 6, 12, and 18 months in a low-resource setting? * What are the barriers to practicing KMC in low birthweight infants following hospital discharge in a low-resource setting? * What is the prevalence of paternal depression in a low resource setting? * Is it cost effective to admit preterm mother-infant dyads to the KMC ward following NICU discharge? Researchers will compare (extended admission to the KMC ward) to (standard of care KMC) to see if extended KMC decreases PPD in mothers of preterm infants in low-resource settings. Participants (infants) will: * At time of discharge from the NICU, when clinically stable, spend either \< 2 days in the KMC ward with their mothers or spend longer in the KMC ward until discharge. * Return to clinic at routine follow-up visits (at 2 weeks and at 6-8 weeks) where mothers will be screened for postpartum depression and fathers will be screened for depression. * Return to clinic for neurodevelopmental screening at 6, 12, and 18 months where mothers will be screened for postpartum depression and perceived social support and fathers will be screened for depression.

Predictive Value of Lung Ultrasound for Respiratory Decompensation in Late Preterm Neonates

Respiratory morbidity presents a significant clinical challenge in the neonatal period, and an individual patient's clinical course is often difficult to predict. This is especially true for late-preterm infants, who share some of the same risks of premature babies in terms or respiratory morbidity, but whose births may not always be attended by a neonatologist, or who may be born at hospitals with lower level Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) and require transfer if they decompensate. With this study, the aim is to 1) determine the efficacy of early point of care lung ultrasound (LUS) to predict respiratory decompensation in the first 48 hours of life in late preterm infants and 2) to compare the performance of three lung ultrasound scoring systems, 3 type-of-lung, high risk pattern and total LUS scoring systems.

Cerebral Oxygen Saturation Monitoring During Optimum Cord Management in Preterm Infants

This study will assess the feasibilty measuring cerebral oxygen saturations using a Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) monitor immediately after delivery of preterm infants. The investigators aim to evaluate the effects of optimum cord management on cerebral oxygenation in this cohort

Preemie Milk Analyser Validation Study

This study aims to test and validate the Preemie Ecosystem- a new device and associated software package for measuring the nutrient (fat, protein and carbohydrate) content of the breast milk of the mothers of premature babies. This is potentially useful, as premature babies have higher nutritional requirements than babies born at term near their due date. At the moment, a nutritional supplement called breast milk fortifier is added to breast milk in standard amounts to improve its nutritional content and help premature babies grow. However, we know that each mother's breast milk is different, and varies from day to day, so each mother's milk may require more or less of such supplements in order to meet European recommendations for the nutrient intake. The aim of this study is to first test and validate the accuracy of the Preemie device for measuring the nutritional content of mother's breast milk, using milk donated to the local donor milk bank and from mothers of babies currently on the neonatal unit. Next, once this is complete, the aim is to demonstrate it is feasible to use the Preemie device to enable fortification of mother's milk on an individualised basis for a small group of premature babies. The growth and nutrient intakes of these babies will be compared to another group who are cared for using the standard fortification approach. The results of this study will be used to gain "Conformité Européenne" (CE) certification of the Preemie device and software.

Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study of Twin Maternal-Child Dyads in China

Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study of Twin Maternal-Child Dyads in China (ChiTwiMC) is supported by National Key Research and Development Program of China - Reproductive Health and Women's and Children's Health Protection Project. This project is funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China under grant number 2023YFC2705900. The ChiTwiMC cohort is led by Professor Wei Yuan from the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Peking University Third Hospital.

The Impact of the SENSE Program on NICU

The SENSE program will be applied to babies receiving treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit and the effect of the application on the baby and parents will be examined.

I-InTERACT Preterm

Open pilot of a brief online parenting-skills intervention for young children ages 3-8 who were born very preterm (\< 32 weeks gestational age). Parent-child interactions, child behavior, parent functioning, and child white matter connectivity will be assessed pre- and post-intervention 10 weeks later.

Study of Pregnancy Pathologies Associated With Placental Abnormalities

Pregnancy pathologies can occur from implantation until childbirth. The investigators are interested in the development mechanisms of these pathologies and aim to develop therapies to treat them. The investigators need to collect samples, especially placental samples, following abortions and term and premature deliveries. Abortions will allow investigators to have non-pathological placental material up to 13 weeks. This material will serve as a reference for the understanding of the histological changes that occur in normal placentas collected at term of pregnancy. The latter will, in turn, be compared with the placentas collected during premature deliveries. Also, the abortion product will be cultivated in an environment mimicking the pathology of pre-eclampsia. This study will allow investigators to advance their understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of the placenta. The investigators are internationally recognized for their research on these pathologies.

Citicoline as Neuroprotector in Preterm

Citicoline as neuroprotector in preterm