Expectant mothers may no longer need to be caught unaware of their delivery day as a new scientific technique promises more accurate predictions. Researchers have found blood biomarkers that can be used to accurately predict their delivery day.
In a recent study published in “Science Translational Medicine”, a team of researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine established the basis for clinical trials that reduced the expected time a child would arrive which is about a two-week window. This is a major advancement from the current five-week delivery period given to mothers.
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About three weeks before the onset of spontaneous activity, many physical changes begin to occur in the mother, preparing her for the big day. These include changes in steroid hormone levels, coagulation factors, and body control symptoms. On average, most women deliver their babies after 40 weeks of pregnancy.
As part of the study, researchers took blood samples from 63 women during the tail end of the third trimester of their pregnancy. The samples were then tested by a panel of more than 7,000 metabolic, immune, and other cell identification factors. The team found that during this phase, several signaling biological changes occurred, including a spike in progesterone, cortisol, placental protein, and coagulation factor. Researchers found that inflammatory regulators, such as IL-1R4, also play a role in prenatal function, preparing the mother’s body for recovery and resolving the immune system after birth.
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This research lays the groundwork for the development of blood-based methods of predicting labor days, which are based on the predominant methods of preterm pregnancy and menstruation. As a next step, the team plans to validate their research findings in a larger group of women and identify the effects of this data on building refined, effective clinical reduction strategies which will be a groundbreaking technique and revolutionize medical science.
