Delivering action on preterm births

LACKRITZ, EVE; WILSON, CHRISTOPHER ; GUTTMACHER, ALAN; HOWSE, JENNIFER L ; ENGMANN, CYRIL; RUBENS, CRAIG; MUGLIA, LOUIS J ; GRAVETT, MICHAEL G ; GOLDENBERG, ROBERT L ; MURRAY, JEFFREY C ; SPONG, CATHERINE Y ; SIMPSON, JOE LEIGH; SHAMS EL ARIFEEN; BELIZAN, JOSE M.; BHUTTA, ZULFI QAR ; CARLO, WALLY ; CHALLIS, A J; CULHANE, JENNIFER F ; DEAL, CAROLYN D ; ELOVITZ, MICHAL A ; HOMER, CHARLES J ; HOWSON, CHRISTOPHER P ; LAWN, JOY; LITCH, JAMES; MADDOX, YVONNE T ; MENDELSON, CAROLE; MESIANO, SAM ; RELMAN, DAVID A ; ROMERO, ROBERTO ; SADOVSKY, YOEL ; SHURIN, SUSAN B ; SIMHAN, HYAGRIV N ; WAISWA, PETER ; WINCH, PETER ; WISE,PAUL H

LANCET

ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2013 vol. 382

0140-6736

Although important gains have been made in child survival over the past two decades, reduction inneonatal mortality (ie, deaths in the fi rst month of life) has lagged substantially. Neonatal deaths now account for 44% of all under-5 deaths worldwide. Preterm birth is the leading cause of neonatal death, the second leading cause of all under-5 mortality, and a leading cause of severe childhood neurological disability. Despite this high global burden, little is known about how to prevent preterm birth and, in low-income and middle-income countries, how best to scale up strategies that are practical and aff ordable. Preterm birth is a fi nal common pathway for many complex pathological processes. A comprehensive research agenda is therefore needed to accelerate identification of mediators of preterm birth and innovative solutions. To forge a road map for this action agenda, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth (GAPPS), March of Dimes (MOD), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health andHuman Development, and WHO convened meetings of experts to develop a research agenda that spans the range of discovery, development, and delivery science needed to drive global change. This Comment summarises this solution pathway and the next steps toward its implementation.