A new study published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology found that very premature babies have fewer breathing problems when they’re born via vaginal delivery compared to those born via C-section.

The research, which studied more than 20,000 newborns, found that regardless of why a C-section birth was preformed (whether because of pregnancy-related complications or maternal medical problems), vaginally delivery tended to be saver for premature babies. Werner’s team of researchers collected data from birth certificate and hospital discharge records for 20,231 babies born early (between 24 and 34 weeks) in New York between 1995 and 2003. They found that just over two-thirds of the babies were born vaginally.

After the data had been collected, researchers factored in mother’s age, race and underlying medical conditions. From there, they concluded that babies delivered via C-section were more likely to be born in respiratory distress: over 39% of C-section preemies had breathing problems, while just 26% of vaginally delivered preemies exhibited breathing problems. Researchers calculated that between seven and eight preemie deliveries would have to be switched from C-sections to vaginal births to avoid one case of newborn respiratory distress.

Dr. Erika Werner, who led the study at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, said, “My suspicion is that the labor process, the contractions, that natural squeezing probably does something to clear out the lungs so that when babies are born they have a better breathing status,” adding, “If a vaginal delivery is safe, it’s something that should be attempted.”

According to data collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, C-section births accounted for almost 1 in 3 births in 2011, which is up from 1 in 5 births in 1996.  Now, researchers worry that because the rate of C-sections continues on an upward trend for all pregnancies, there are more possible complications for mothers and babies.

Though Werner is the first to recognize that there are certain circumstances where a C-section delivery is required (such as maternal bleeding or the baby’s heart rate drops), she did acknowledge that there hasn’t been much data collected on whether C-section or vaginal delivery is the safer method for other premature babies.

Because Werner and her team looked back on old records, they were not able to control for all the differences between women who had C-sections and vaginal deliveries, which she calls a “huge limitation” of the study. She said, “I was struck by the fact that there does not seem to be an increased risk of some things with C-section. “

Yet, one thing Werner feels the study did shed light on is the need for further research. Citing the limitations of her own work, she said, “I don’t know if you can make a definitive statement that it is higher risk to have a C-section based on this study.”

Are you surprised by this study?

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Turns out all you really need is a tune!

New research conducted by the Louis Armstrong Center for Music and Medicine at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York found that infants born with respiratory distress or sepsis tended to do better while listening to sounds similar to their mothers heartbeat or hearing their parents sing a lullaby.

The research included 272 premature babies being treated at 11 NICUs where music therapists were available. At different times over the course of two weeks, babies’ parents sang to them or the therapist used one of two devices menat to simulate womb sounds every 10 minutes. Then, Loewy and her colleauges compared each premature infants’ vital signs during those periods, as well as their eating and sleeping habits. Those numbers were compared to their vitals when no music was played.

Researchers found that babies’ heart rates dropped by one or two beats per minute (on average) while they listened to their parents sing lullabies and heartbeat sounds. They also found that babies’ heart rates dropped just after they’d heard other womb-like sounds.

Joanne Loewy, head of the Louis Armstrong Center said, “The singing is extremely important because it represents familiarity — the baby heard the mother and father’s voice as early as 16 weeks, plus you have melody and rhythm in song.”

“We are learning from the literature and studies like this that premature infants do not necessarily grow best tucked away in an incubator. Neurological function can be enhanced with music; vital signs can be enhanced through interactive sounds and music therapy,” she said.

Researchers also found that each infants sucking rate sped up with the heartbeat sounds, in particular, and there was a longer-term improvement in sleep patterns tied to the womb-like fluid noises. However, there were no babies involved in this study that were exposed to only silence or quiet talking. This means that researchers cannot say how these preemies would have compared to a no-music group. They can only conclude from previous studies that these babies did better while hearing music.

Did you sing to your infant?

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If you’ve read the parenting books — or seen a few episodes of Grey’s Anatomy — you’ve probably heard that skin-to-skin contact (a.k.a. kangaroo care) is good for newborns.

Holding baby directly to your skin is said to help regulate baby’s heart rate, breathing and body temperature; calm and relax both mom and baby; help preterm babies fight infection, grow and develop better; and promote bonding. So basically, it’s all-around an awesome idea.

And Rosie O’Donnell seems to be a big fan of skin-to-skin contact! The funny woman recently posted a photo of herself holding her two-week-old baby girl, Dakota, using a special babywearing shirt. “NuRoo Baby… a wonderful baby carrier with skin-on-skin contact. Love it,” wrote Rosie.

Basically, the NuRoo is a baby-carrier-meets-shirt, and we’re loving how it can keep your hands free to do other things while you’re snuggling with baby. (You might feel like an actual kangaroo, but there’s nothing wrong with that!) It’s available for $60 at NuRoo.com.

What do you think of the NuRoo — would you use it?

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Here’s some surprising news — the U.S. ranks 131^st when it comes to low preterm birth rates. According to a new report, “Born Too Soon: The Global Action Report on Preterm Birth” by The March of Dimes Foundation, The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, Save the Children and The World Health Organization, 15 million babies worldwide are born preterm every year. More than one million of those babies die from preterm complications – these babies could have been saved if cost-effective care like warmth, breastfeeding support and basic care for infections and breathing difficulties were offered. Babies are considered preterm if they are born before 37 weeks gestation. Health issues associated with preterm birth are breathing problems, developmental problems, cerebral palsy and intellectual disabilities. According to the Institute of Medicine, preterm birth costs more than $26 billion annually.

The U.S. currently has a preterm birth rate of 12.0 per 100 live births and is almost tied with Somalia, Thailand and Turkey. While over 60% of preterm births occur in Africa and South Asia, the 10 countries with the highest numbers include Brazil, the United States, India and Nigeria. There is also a dramatic survival gap between preterm babies born in low-income countries and those who live in high-income countries – over 90% of extremely preterm babies (born before 28 weeks gestation) die a few days after birth, while only 10% of extremely preterm babies in high-income countries die after a few days.

The new report finds that preterm birth rates are increasing worldwide each year and nearly half a million babies are born too soon in the U.S. every year. “This report offers conclusive evidence that the United States rate of preterm birth has been far too high for far too long,” says Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes. “While our country excels in helping preemies survive, we have failed to do enough to prevent preterm births and help more mothers carry their babies full-term.”

The March of Dimes has recommendations to prevent preterm births in the United States: giving women access to health care, behavioral changes like quitting smoking, progesterone treatments for women who have had a previous preterm birth, better management of fertility treatments that result in multiples and making sure hospitals do not offer early inductions or c-sections before 39 weeks gestation if the mother is having a healthy pregnancy.

What do you think of these stats? Are you worried about preterm birth?

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It’s Autism Awareness Month, and there’s a lot that’s unknown about autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), so we’ve been hearing quite a bit about the latest studies on the subject. Here’s the latest scoop on some things that could increase a child’s risk of having an ASD or having more severe ASD symptoms.

Dad’s Age

Researchers have been unable to pinpoint genetic causes of ASD, but they do believe they’re a factor. One new study suggests that the answer could be linked to the child’s father’s age. Several teams, including researchers at the Harvard/MIT Broad Institute, Yale University and the University of Washington worked together to analyze the DNA of 549 families with at least one family member with autism. They found that certain genetic material could become mutated as they’re passed along to a child — about 14 percent of the people with autism has suspected mutations, which is about five times the normal rate. They found that the mutations can harm certain pathways in the brain, causing ASD symptoms. They also found that the number of those mutations increased with the father’s age.

Being born Preterm or Post-term

Previous studies have suggested that preemies have higher rates of autism, but a new study from Michigan State University looks at post-term babies too. The study, which was published in the Journal of Autism and Development Disorders looked at data on nearly 4,200 mothers who had autistic children ages four through 21. The moms filled out questionnaires on their children’s autism symptoms, and the researchers found that very preterm (born before 34 weeks gestation), preterm (34 to 37 weeks) and post-term (born after 42 weeks) autistic children had significantly higher screening scores for autism spectrum disorder than autistic children born full term (between 37 and 42) weeks. In other words, their symptoms were more severe if they were born before or after the full-term range.

“We think about autism being caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors,” said researcher Tammy Movsas in a press release. “With preterm and post-term babies, there is something underlying that is altering the genetic expression of autism.”

More research needs to be done on both fronts, but we’re hoping these studies help scientists hone in on the true causes of autism.

Plus, more from The Bump:

Autism Rate Increases to 1 in 88 Kids

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