Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia – A Regenerative Medicine Approach
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$480,406.00
Summary
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is a major leading cause of morbidity and mortality in premature babies. There is no cure. We have previously shown that amnion epithelial cells can reduce the extent of lung damage during early stages of lung development. We aim to understand how amnion cells can promote repair by interacting with existing cell types in order to restore normal lung structure and function. The outcomes from this study will help design clinical trials and develop new therapies.
Imaging Lung Aeration And Lung Motion Following Very Premature Birth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$517,631.00
Summary
Using a synchrotron as an X-ray source, we will image the lungs as they aerate at birth and optimise ventilation strategies that improve lung aeration while minimising the risk of ventilation-induced lung injury.
Does Variable Ventilation Offer Physiological And Biological Benefits For The Preterm Lung?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$320,278.00
Summary
Lung disease is a significant cause of illness at birth, subsequent breathing problems and death in very premature babies. We know that chronic preterm lung disease results in part from the immature state of the lung at birth, but it appears that inflammation of the lung also plays an important role. We, and others, have shown that this lung inflammation can be a response to injury from mechanical ventilation after birth. In the past, we have sought to strictly control the way that babies are ve ....Lung disease is a significant cause of illness at birth, subsequent breathing problems and death in very premature babies. We know that chronic preterm lung disease results in part from the immature state of the lung at birth, but it appears that inflammation of the lung also plays an important role. We, and others, have shown that this lung inflammation can be a response to injury from mechanical ventilation after birth. In the past, we have sought to strictly control the way that babies are ventilated. We have regulated the pressures used to inflate their lungs, the amount of volume delivered to the lung, the amount of time that the baby has to take a breath. This is a marked contrast to breathing patterns in healthy infants and adults, in which each of these things vary considerably from breath to breath. Recent studies have shown that the presence of variability in breathing patterns is actual essential to the process of staying healthy and maintaining resting lung volume above a critical lower limit. This study will provide unique insights into a new and potentially highly beneficial approaches to ventilation for preterm infants. We will determine if there is a significant clinical benefit of incorporating variability into the ventilatory waveform used to treat newborn babies with lung disease. has the potential to cause a paradigm shift in current concepts of preterm infant ventilatory strategies. Potential long term outcomes include significantly reducing illness and death associated with preterm birth, and promoting a healthier start to life for the over 6000 infants who require ventilatory assistance each year within the Australian and New Zealand neonatal network.Read moreRead less
Does Placental Transfusion Prevent Death And Disability In Very Preterm Infants? Childhood Follow Up In The NHMRC Australian Placental Transfusion Study.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$889,406.00
Summary
A million babies are born before 30 weeks gestation worldwide each year. Many die or face a lifetime of disability. Enhancing placental transfusion in these infants by deferred clamping of the umbilical cord (DCC) is a simple procedure that may reduce mortality and major disability in childhood. The Australian Placental Transfusion Study (APTS), the largest ever RCT of deferred clamping, will follow up 1200 children born preterm to evaluate if DCC has childhood benefits at 2 years age.
Towards Improved Respiratory Outcomes In Preterm Infants Through Rapid And Effective Aerosalisation Of Medication To The Lung
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$318,768.00
Summary
Babies born premature are greatest at risk from increasingly common respiratory illnesses. It is possible that delivering a medication by aerosol will be the most effective method of treatment. For premature babies that need breathing support, inhaled medication could improve care. For highly infectious respiratory illnesses such as RSV, with no vaccines available, we need to protect babies very early in life. I will use an established lamb model to test fast medication delivery to the lungs.
We are an international team committed to clinical trials to improve survival without disability in newborn babies. We plan a randomised trial to confirm if bovine lactoferrin, an inexpensive dairy protein, reduces death or major morbidity and increases total breast milk intake in 1,500 very low birthweight babies in neonatal intensive care units
The Effect Of Probiotics On The Neurodevelopmental Outcomes Of Preterm Infants
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,068,804.00
Summary
Premature infants are at increased risk of abnormal development, meaning problems with their ability to walk, talk, think, hear and see. Giving premature babies ‘good bacteria’ (probiotics) may help them survive, but little is known about how probiotics affect long-term development. This is the first large study to assess the development of children who were involved in a trial of probiotics following their premature birth.
Should Very Premature Babies Receive A Placental Transfusion At Birth? A Randomised Controlled Trial.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,875,774.00
Summary
Premature babies under 30 weeks gestation are up to a hundred times more likely than full term babies to die or survive with major disability, often from brain damage due to poor blood flow after birth. This randomised study will find out if giving them more placental blood at birth, by means of a delay in clamping the umbilical cord, then milking it, reduces anemia, blood transfusions, brain damage, infection, death and disability. The results may benefit millions of premature babies worldwide.
Born A Bit Early: Long-term Child Educational And Health Outcomes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$597,170.00
Summary
This will be a population level study covering all children born in New South Wales between 1994 and 2010. The size of the study population will be approximately 1.5 million children. The ratio of males to females will be approximately 1:1.
Understanding Typical And Atypical Development Of The Infant Brain
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$428,065.00
Summary
This project will apply advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to understand how brain abnormalities in preterm infants relate to their functional impairments. It aims to: develop new software to easily and accurately measure infant brain structures and tissues; understand the neurobiological basis for adverse outcomes, enabling diagnosis of high risk preterm infants; and identify MRI biomarkers to assess interventions designed to give Australian babies a healthier start to life.