Improving maternal, neonatal and child health outcomes in low-resource settings: Translating research evidence to practice – report from The Third International Conference on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health

Preterm birth remains a common cause of neonatal mortality with a disproportionate burden occurring in low and middle-income countries. Meta-analyses of low-dose aspirin to prevent preeclampsia suggest that the incidence of preterm birth may also be decreased, particularly if initiated before 16 weeks. We completed a randomised multi-country (Democratic Republic of Congo, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Pakistan, Zambia) double masked trial of aspirin (81 mg) daily compared to placebo initiated between 6 weeks and 0 days and 13 weeks and 6 days of pregnancy in nulliparous women between14 and 40 years of age with an ultrasound confirming gestational age and singleton viable pregnancy. Randomisation (1:1) was stratified by site. The primary outcome of preterm birth, defined as delivery prior to 37 weeks gestational age, was analyzed in randomised women with pregnancy outcomes at or after 20 weeks. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , number NCT02409680 , and the Clinical Trial Registry, India, number CTRI/2016/05/006970. From March 2016 through June 2018, 11,976 women were assigned to aspirin (5,990 women) or placebo (5,986 women). Amongst randomised women, an evaluable birth outcome beyond 20 weeks occurred in 5787 women who received Aspirin and 5771 women who received placebo Preterm birth occurred in 11.6% of women randomised to aspirin and 13.1% randomised to placebo (Relative Risk [RR], 0.89; 95% CI, 0.81 to 0.98; Risk Difference, −0·02; 95% CI, −0·03, −0·01). Women randomised to aspirin were less likely to experience perinatal mortality (45.7/1000 vs 53.6/1000; RR, 0.86; 95%CI, 0.73 to 1.00). Other adverse maternal/neonatal events were similar between the two groups. In nulliparous women with singleton pregnancies, low dose aspirin initiated between 6 weeks and 0 days and 13 weeks and 6 days results in lower rates of preterm delivery before 37 weeks and perinatal mortality. Funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Stillbirths occur 10-20 times more frequently in low-income settings compared with high-income settings. We created a methodology to define the proportion of stillbirths that are potentially preventable in low-income settings and applied it to stillbirths in sites in India and Pakistan.

Background We identified pathogens found in internal organs and placentas of deceased preterm infants cared for in hospitals in India and Pakistan. Methods Prospective, observational study conducted in delivery units and neonatal intensive care units. Tissue samples from deceased neonates obtained by minimally invasive tissue sampling and placentas were examined for 73 different pathogens using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results Tissue for pathogen PCR was obtained from liver, lung, brain, blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and placentas from 377 deceased preterm infants. Between 17.6% and 34.1% of each type of tissue had at least 1 organism identified. Organism detection was highest in blood (34.1%), followed by lung (31.1%), liver (23.3%), cerebrospinal fluid (22.3%), and brain (17.6%). A total of 49.7% of the deceased infants had at least 1 organism. Acinetobacter baumannii was in 28.4% of the neonates compared with 14.6% for Klebsiella pneumoniae , 11.9% for Escherichia coli/Shigella , and 11.1% for Haemophilus influenzae . Group B streptococcus was identified in only 1.3% of the neonatal deaths. A. baumannii was rarely found in the placenta and was found more commonly in the internal organs of neonates who died later in the neonatal period. The most common organism found in placentas was Ureaplasma urealyticum in 34% of the samples, with no other organism found in >4% of samples. Conclusions In organ samples from deceased infants in India and Pakistan, evaluated with multiplex pathogen PCR, A. baumannii was the most commonly identified organism. Group B streptococcus was rarely found. A. baumannii was rarely found in the placentas of these deceased neonates. In organ samples from deceased infants evaluated with multiplex polymerase chain reaction, Acinetobacter baumannii was the most common pathogen. Because A. baumannii was rare in the placentas and increased the longer the infant survived, nosocomial acquisition is likely.