Trial tests game-changing labour monitor Most first-time mums focus on their baby’s arrival.
Low oxygen during birth can lead to cerebral palsy, a condition which costs the Australian economy over $15 billion each year. “This device will certainly reduce those cases, because you’ll be able to better monitor those babies,” he said. VitalTrace, a medical-tech company based in Western Australia, has been developing the device in collaboration with researchers from the University of Western Australia and the University of Sydney for seven years. Plans are now underway for a further trial and a larger feasibility study.
But for Alexandra Loftus, giving birth at RNSH was also a chance to give back—by joining a clinical trial of a new device that monitors babies’ oxygen levels during labour. “I thought it was a wonderful opportunity for little Poppy to come into the world being part of something bigger,” she said. “I feel quite excited for Poppy’s generation, that they will have something that’s much more seamless’ “The fact that this device will do more and is much less invasive is huge.” Between March and August this year, she was one of 10 mothers—five at RNSH—who wore the device, which RNSH obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Sean Seeho described as a “revolution” in the delivery of babies. Currently, babies’ heart rates and lactate levels are monitored during labour, but testing can be inaccurate and cumbersome. The new device attaches to a baby’s scalp, and alongside measuring heart rate, continuously monitors lactate —a chemical produced when oxygen levels are low.
Alexandra and her daughter Poppy were part of the clinical trial
The Royal North Shore Hospital team working with VitalTrace
WWW.NSLHD.HEALTH.NSW.GOV.AU
16
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online