Prematurity, a leading cause of infant death, affects one in eight babies born in the United States. Stillbirth, another adverse pregnancy outcome, devastates 25,000 U.S. families each year.  Ethnic and racial disparities persist, and few solutions exist. The Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth ( GAPPS ), an initiative of Seattle Children’s, is accelerating progress on these local and global health crises.

While recent U.S. data show a promising decline for the overall prematurity rate, the rate for early preterm births (24-32 weeks) has not improved. These newborns have the greatest short- and long-term health risks, including infant mortality, and incur the highest health care costs. An alarming discrepancy exists between costs and investments to identify causes and solutions: prematurity is a leading U.S. health care expenditure ($26B in 2005), but is not a relatively high funding priority for the NIH (prematurity research ranks 101^st).

A comprehensive report, led by GAPPS, highlights the enormous global impact of preterm birth and stillbirth — and what can be done to decrease these crises. Globally, an estimated 13 million babies are born prior to 37 completed weeks of pregnancy each year. Preterm birth contributes to one million neonatal deaths annually, and many survivors have serious disabilities. Additionally, an estimated 3.2 million are stillborn each year, and many of these losses are linked to maternal deaths.

The Global Report on Preterm & Stillbirth, published with BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, identifies an urgent need for increased research to close the solution gaps. For example, existing, cost-effective interventions would only prevent less than 4 percent of all preterm births if implemented globally. Research investments are crucial to understand causes and speed up development of diagnostic, treatment and prevention strategies. The report was written by an interdisciplinary team of maternal, newborn and child health experts from around the globe. It was released earlier this year and supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Seattle Children’s, a leading pediatric hospital and research institute.

“We can save more lives, but we urgently need more action and resources to better understand the causes of prematurity and stillbirth, and to guide development of cost-effective interventions,” said Dr. Craig E. Rubens, executive director of GAPPS. “For the first time ever, experts from around the world have agreed to a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to solving these global tragedies.”

For further information please contact Toni Nunes or visit www.gapps.org.  Our mission is to lead a collaborative, global effort to increase awareness and accelerate innovative research and interventions that will improve maternal, newborn and child health outcomes.