Mar. 26, 2008 Hunter researchers have discovered that male
babies born prematurely are more vulnerable to cardiovascular
complications than female babies. This finding may explain why
male babies born prematurely are twice as likely to die as
female babies in the first 72 hours of life. It could also lead
to new ways of treating premature babies throughout the world.
Researchers from Hunter New England Health and the University of
Newcastle, in collaboration with the Hunter Medical Research
Institute's Pregnancy and Reproduction Research Program,
completed two studies, looking at babies born at 24 weeks to
full term. "This is the first time that the small blood vessels
(microvasculature) have been extensively studied in a large
group of premature babies," said Dr Ian Wright, a Neonatologist
at Hunter New England Health's Kaleidoscope Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit. "We discovered that changes in small blood vessels
are linked with how sick the babies are after birth. Babies who
had low blood pressure and were m