This Artificial Womb Could Boost Survival Rates Among Premature Babies
- 7 years ago
A team of doctors has created an artificial womb that could allow a fetus as young as 23 weeks to continue to develop until it is better able to survive in the world.
The survival rates for premature babies are not good, and those that do make it often present with disabilities and serious health conditions.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Preterm birth, or being born too early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy), is the biggest contributor to infant death. In 2013, about one third (36%) of infant deaths were due to preterm-related causes."
A team of doctors with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia believes it is making great progress in preventing such outcomes.
They have created an artificial womb that could allow a fetus as young as 23 weeks to continue to develop until it is better able to survive in the world. Thus far, experiments have only involved lambs, but they have produced positive results.
According to a press release about the development, “The innovative system uses a unique fluid-filled container attached to custom-designed machines that provide physiologic support. The fetal lambs grow in a temperature-controlled, near-sterile environment, breathing amniotic fluid as they normally do in the womb, their hearts pumping blood through their umbilical cord into a gas exchange machine outside the bag. Electronic monitors measure vital signs, blood flow and other crucial functions.”
Alan Flake, the lead researcher, says, “They've had normal growth. They've had normal lung maturation. They've had normal brain maturation. They've had normal development in every way that we can measure it."
He hopes to begin human trials in about 3 to 5 years.
The survival rates for premature babies are not good, and those that do make it often present with disabilities and serious health conditions.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Preterm birth, or being born too early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy), is the biggest contributor to infant death. In 2013, about one third (36%) of infant deaths were due to preterm-related causes."
A team of doctors with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia believes it is making great progress in preventing such outcomes.
They have created an artificial womb that could allow a fetus as young as 23 weeks to continue to develop until it is better able to survive in the world. Thus far, experiments have only involved lambs, but they have produced positive results.
According to a press release about the development, “The innovative system uses a unique fluid-filled container attached to custom-designed machines that provide physiologic support. The fetal lambs grow in a temperature-controlled, near-sterile environment, breathing amniotic fluid as they normally do in the womb, their hearts pumping blood through their umbilical cord into a gas exchange machine outside the bag. Electronic monitors measure vital signs, blood flow and other crucial functions.”
Alan Flake, the lead researcher, says, “They've had normal growth. They've had normal lung maturation. They've had normal brain maturation. They've had normal development in every way that we can measure it."
He hopes to begin human trials in about 3 to 5 years.