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Surgery for stress urinary incontinence improves symptoms of another form of incontinence, called urgency urinary incontinence, in women who have both types, according to a study supported by NIH.

Two surgical procedures used to correct vaginal prolapse—one to remove the uterus and one that supports the uterus with mesh—have comparable three-year outcomes.

Teen girls—but not boys—who prefer to go to bed later are more likely to gain weight, compared to same-age girls who go to bed earlier, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Treating preterm infants with antibiotics for more than 20 months appears to promote the development of multidrug-resistant gut bacteria, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The research appears in Nature Microbiology.

Improved data reporting among the factors critical to reducing life-threatening complications of pregnancy and childbirth

Carriers of the FMR1 premutation—a mutation in the gene associated with the developmental disorder Fragile X syndrome—may have a higher risk for several health conditions, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Infants born to mothers taking the drug naltrexone to treat opioid use disorder showed no signs of drug withdrawal and had shorter hospital stays than infants born to mothers undergoing the standard treatment, according to a small study funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Inherited genetic factors account for approximately 80 percent of the risk for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to estimates published in a study funded by NIH.

NIH-supported research calls for well-defined standards for infants between 6 months and 1 year

Children born to women on HIV therapy containing the drug dolutegravir since conception have a slightly higher risk of neural tube defects, compared to children born to women on regimens of other antiretroviral drugs.

Low vitamin D levels at birth or in early childhood may increase the risk of high blood pressure in later childhood or adolescence, suggests a study funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Health Resources and Services Administration.

NICHD’s contributions to research on learning disabilities highlight decades of studies that informed the identification, recognition and treatment of these disorders.

Infants of the extinct human species Australopithecus africanus likely breast fed for up to a year after birth, similar to modern humans but of shorter duration than modern day great apes, according to an analysis of fossil teeth funded in part by the National Institutes of Health. The findings provide insight into how breast feeding evolved among humans and may inform strategies to improve modern breast-feeding practices.

Elevated blood pressure in the first trimester of pregnancy, or an increase in blood pressure between the first and second trimesters, raises the chances of a high blood pressure disorder of pregnancy, according to a study funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Preterm infants with a lower-than-normal growth rate have key differences in the bacteria and other organisms that live in their digestive tracts, according to a study funded by the NICHD. Moreover, byproducts of metabolism in slow-growing preterm infants are like those found in malnourished children, despite receiving a diet appropriate for their age.

Truvada, a drug combination that reduces the chances of HIV infection in high-risk people may result in small, yet persistent bone loss in younger adolescent males, suggests a study supported by the NICHD. The researchers added, however, that the protection against HIV offered by Truvada far outweighs any possible risks from bone loss.

Long-acting contraception after childbirth could help teens avoid short-interval pregnancies, suggests NIH-funded study.

NIH invites scientists, advocacy and family groups, representatives from federal and local agencies, and others to provide comments and suggestions on its draft research plan on Fragile X syndrome and associated conditions.

Supportive parenting may help adolescents avoid brain development issues that have been linked to living in poverty, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. By age 25, children of supportive parents—those who reason with and encourage their children to consider the consequences of their behavior—had more neural connections in brain regions that regulate learning, memory, and emotional control, compared to peers with less supportive parents.

A research project funded by the National Institutes of Health has identified differences in the vaginal bacteria that may raise the risk of preterm birth among pregnant African American women. The findings could be a first step toward the development of a screen for the early identification of preterm birth risk in this population.