background: determining the prevalence and risk factors of thrombocytopenia among neonates enables us to prevent the inevitable and sometimes irreversible complications. in this study we aimed to survey the frequency of thrombocytopenia and its demographic features and risk factors. materials and methods: in this cross sectional study the platelet counts of 364 neonates admitted to neonatal int...

  Background and Objective: Preterm birth occurs in 8% to 11% of all pregnancies and is responsible for 75% to 80% of all neonatal deaths. Cytokines may be involved in the etiology of preterm birth through their stimulation of prostaglandin synthesis. Cytokines may be released intocervicovaginal fluid during the breakdown of the chorio-decidual adhesion or from an inflammatory reactio...

We investigate sex-associated effects of preterm birth on cerebral gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) volumes. Preterm children (n=65) and 31 healthy, term control children had usable magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data acquired at 8 years of age. Both GM and WM volumes were significantly reduced in the preterm group compared with controls. However, only males with preterm birth had signi...

There are currently more than 15 million preterm births each year. We propose that gene-environment interaction is a major contributor to preterm birth. To address this experimentally, we generated a mouse model with uterine deletion of Trp53, which exhibits approximately 50% incidence of spontaneous preterm birth due to premature decidual senescence with increased mTORC1 activity and COX2 sign...

Group B streptococcus (GBS) is an important cause of early- and late-onset sepsis in the newborn. Preterm infants have markedly increased susceptibility and worse outcomes, but their immunological responses to GBS are poorly defined. We compared mononuclear cell and whole-blood cytokine responses to heat-killed GBS (HKGBS) of preterm infants (gestational age [GA], 26 to 33 weeks), term infants,...

OBJECTIVE To analyse preterm birth rates worldwide to assess the incidence of this public health problem, map the regional distribution of preterm births and gain insight into existing assessment strategies. METHODS Data on preterm birth rates worldwide were extracted during a previous systematic review of published and unpublished data on maternal mortality and morbidity reported between 199...

OBJECTIVES Preterm neonates are at increased risk of sepsis compared with those born at term. We investigated immune status at birth and early neonatal life in very preterm neonates and its association with short-term outcomes. METHODS Prospective observational study conducted at a university hospital recruiting 113 preterm neonates (23-32 weeks) and 78 controls. Monocyte major histocompatibi...

Background—Low levels of circulating thyroid hormones have been associated with poorer general and neurodevelopmental outcome in preterm babies and it has been speculated that the association is causal. Low levels of circulating thyroid hormone have been reported after inadequate intake of iodine in preterm infants being fed milk formula. Aim—To investigate whether increased iodine intake from ...