News & Updates

NICHD issues Releases and Media Advisories to the news media. Science Updates and Spotlights explain NICHD research findings and public health issues to the general public. An Item of Interest is a short announcement such as an initiative launch or a notable staff change. Director’s Corner posts are monthly updates from the NICHD director.

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Director's Corner: Preventing Pediatric Injuries

A sign reading “Caution, no lifeguard, swim at own risk” appears in the foreground. A sandy beach with dune grasses appears blurred in the background.

With its longer days and warmer temperatures, summer is an ideal season for outdoor recreation. But fun activities like swimming also carry the risk of injuries, especially among children. NICHD supports a broad spectrum of research that seeks to prevent and treat pediatric injuries from drowning to dog bites.

Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research

A donut-shaped mass of red cells is dotted with green against a black background. The green fibers are bunched along the lower left edge.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

Director's Corner: Optimizing Care for Newborns

Black and white photo of a calm newborn. The baby is being held by a woman, whose face is shown out-of-focus on the left of the image. The baby is clutching the woman’s hand.

For nearly four decades, NICHD’s Neonatal Research Network (NRN) has generated scientific evidence to improve the health of critically ill newborns. Recent findings from the NRN and collaborators mark an important step toward developing an evidence-based standard of care for newborns who were exposed to opioids during pregnancy.

Release: “Eat, Sleep, Console” reduces hospital stay and need for medication among opioid-exposed infants

An adult holds the foot of a newborn, which has a hospital tag around its ankle.

Researchers have found the “Eat, Sleep, Console” (ESC) care approach to be more effective than using the Finnegan Neonatal Abstinence Scoring Tool (FNAST) to assess and manage opioid-exposed newborns, according to a national clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Item of Interest: NIH selects next round of winners in the RADx® Tech for Maternal Health Challenge

A mother holding an infant and looking at a smartphone.

The National Institutes of Health announced the next round of winners of its RADx® Tech for Maternal Health Challenge—an $8 million prize competition to accelerate development of technologies to improve maternal health outcomes.

Media Advisory: New MRI method provides detailed view of the placenta during pregnancy

A cross-section of the pregnant person and fetus are visible in black and white. The placenta is shown at the top of the uterus in red, green, and blue.

NIH-funded technique enables automatic detection of placental compartments, oxygen status and structural abnormalities.

Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2022

A group of teenagers walk down a school hallway, and one student is being pushed down the hall in his wheelchair. Everyone is wearing facemasks.

Read about NICHD’s research findings and activities from 2022.

Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research

Black and white microscopy image showing the juncture between two nerve cells.

The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.

Spotlight: Advancing neuroscience research for children around the world

A boy and girl are riding bicycles. The scenery is blurred but appears rural.

Eight years ago, NIH announced a collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop solutions for a variety of global health challenges. Learn how NICHD research is supporting this goal.

Science Update: Pregnancy-associated homicides on the rise in the United States, suggests NICHD-funded study

U.S. rates of pregnancy-associated homicide—deaths that occur among women who are pregnant or had been pregnant within one year—rose in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recent NICHD-funded study.

Release: NIH launches $8 million prize competition to reduce maternal deaths in regions that lack maternity care

A mother holding an infant while also looking at a smartphone.

The National Institutes of Health is offering up to $8 million in cash prizes to accelerate development of technologies to improve maternal health outcomes for those who live in areas lacking access to maternity care.

Science Update: Antiviral drug TEMPOL effective in hamster model of COVID-19, suggests NICHD-led study

The 3-dimensional cell is very bumpy and colored light teal against a black background. The viral particles are much smaller and dot the surface of the cell.

The experimental drug TEMPOL prevents viral replication and reduces disease severity in a hamster model of COVID-19, according to a new study led by NICHD.

Release: Risk of premature death in adulthood influenced by patterns of early childhood adversity, NIH study suggests

A young girl sits against a building, holding her knees and looking down.

Poverty, combined with other types of adversity in early childhood, is associated with greater chances of premature death in adulthood, compared to other adverse childhood experiences, according to a study of more than 46,000 people by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

Release: COVID-19 vaccination associated with a small, temporary increase in menstrual cycle length, suggests NIH-funded study

A woman receives a vaccination in her upper arm. She and the person administering the shot are masked.

Women receiving one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine during a single menstrual cycle had an increase in cycle length of nearly one day, according to an NIH-funded study.

News & Updates

Director's Corner: Preventing Pediatric Injuries

Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research

Director's Corner: Optimizing Care for Newborns

Release: “Eat, Sleep, Console” reduces hospital stay and need for medication among opioid-exposed infants

Item of Interest: NIH selects next round of winners in the RADx® Tech for Maternal Health Challenge

Media Advisory: New MRI method provides detailed view of the placenta during pregnancy

Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2022

Spotlight: Scientific Advances from the Division of Intramural Research

Spotlight: Advancing neuroscience research for children around the world

Science Update: Pregnancy-associated homicides on the rise in the United States, suggests NICHD-funded study

Release: NIH launches $8 million prize competition to reduce maternal deaths in regions that lack maternity care

Science Update: Antiviral drug TEMPOL effective in hamster model of COVID-19, suggests NICHD-led study

Release: Risk of premature death in adulthood influenced by patterns of early childhood adversity, NIH study suggests

Spotlight: Small Business Success Stories

Science Update: NIH-funded researchers explore potential links between diabetes drug metformin and birth defects

Spotlight: Decoded: Data-Driven Solutions to Optimize Health and Outcomes for First-time Mothers

Media Advisory: Mandatory masking in schools reduced COVID-19 cases during Delta surge

Media Advisory: SARS-CoV-2 may cause fetal inflammation even in the absence of placental infection

Spotlight: Selected NICHD Research Advances of 2021

Release: COVID-19 vaccination associated with a small, temporary increase in menstrual cycle length, suggests NIH-funded study

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News & Updates