Research

Researchers have secured US$3m to study how brain pain pathways influence endometriosis treatment outcomes, potentially explaining why 25 to 40 per cent of patients do not respond. The project will use neuroimaging to identify brain signatures that could predict which patients benefit from surgery or hormonal treatment. USC researchers Jason Kutch and Neda Jahanshad received [...]

Two-thirds of pregnancies involve weight gain outside recommended pregnancy weight ranges, linked to complications including preterm birth and neonatal intensive care admissions, research shows. Analysis of 1.6 million women found only 32 per cent gained the recommended amount of weight during gestation, with 23 per cent below and 45 per cent above guidelines. Gestational weight [...]

Femtech World explores the latest research and technology developments in the world of women’s health. New insulin delivery technology supports healthier pregnancies An international study has found new insulin delivery technology helps control glucose levels during pregnancy for those with Type 1 diabetes, which is crucial to the health of women and their newborns. The [...]

Maternal stress hormones in pregnancy are linked to earlier tooth eruption, with infants showing about four more teeth on average by six months, new research has revealed. Researchers studied 142 mothers from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds who were pregnant between 2017 and 2022. They measured hormone levels in saliva during late pregnancy, including cortisol, sex hormones [...]

IVF-conceived mice show about 30 per cent more DNA mutations than naturally conceived pups, researchers report, though they caution the findings do not directly translate to humans. Researchers compared genome sequences of laboratory mice conceived naturally with those conceived through assisted reproductive technologies, including hormone treatments, in vitro fertilisation and embryo transfer. Fertility-treated pups had [...]

Researchers are probing why breast cancer patients face lasting fatigue after treatment, with exhaustion affecting up to 90 per cent during therapy. Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) — persistent tiredness not eased by rest — can affect mood, activity and work life. Many survivors report symptoms for months or years after treatment. A University of Brighton team [...]

Automated insulin delivery improves glucose control in pregnant women with type 1 diabetes, an international study has revealed. The technology, which mimics a healthy pancreas, adjusts insulin from a pump in real time using current and predicted glucose. Keeping glucose in range supports the health of both mother and baby. An international clinical trial assessed [...]

Researchers have created a therapeutic HPV vaccine delivered through the nose that could offer a non-invasive treatment for cervical cancer. Screening for HPV and preventive vaccines lower risk, but there are no approved therapies for existing HPV infections or HPV-linked cancers. Current treatments include surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Researchers from Chiba University, Japan, [...]

New research has uncovered biological differences that explain why women with long Covid experience more severe and persistent symptoms than men. Long Covid is diagnosed when neurological, respiratory or gastrointestinal symptoms persist for three months or more after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Women are about three times more likely than men to develop it, but the biology [...]

New research suggests sleep disorders in postmenopausal women may raise the risk of hypertension — abnormally high blood pressure. Postmenopausal women tend to have poorer blood pressure control than men of the same age, partly due to falling oestrogen. They also report more sleep problems, including short sleep, trouble sleeping or obstructive sleep apnoea (when [...]