Twenty six weeks pregnant and with no sign of trouble throughout her pregnancy, Amanda O’Connor suddenly went into labour. Rushed to the Royal Women’s Hospital, Amanda’s labour was unable to be stopped and she gave birth to tiny twin boys, Charles and Oscar.
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Amanda and Brad’s babies boys were taken to the newborn intensive care unit where, in addition to the care they were receiving, the family was approached by researchers to participate in a major study that was underway at the Women’s.
“It was a difficult decision having such tiny babies and not knowing if they were going to survive,” Amanda remembers.
“We agreed to take part because we felt that if others hadn’t done so in the past then the survival chances of our boys would have been greatly reduced and because we felt our boys were in the right place and that we had the full support of the staff.”
Charles and Oscar became part of an international study looking at the use of caffeine to regulate breathing in very premature newborn babies.
Caffeine and similar drugs have been used for more than 30 years to make the breathing of very pre-term babies more regular but, according to researchers, without sufficient knowledge of the possible benefits and risks.
Researchers studying more than 2,000 babies worldwide treated them with either caffeine or a placebo and discovered that those receiving caffeine were less likely to develop cerebal palsy or cognitive delay.
The research study involved infants weighing between 500 and 1250 grams at birth and who were at risk of apnea - interrupted or irregular breathing due to immaturity. Apnea occurs in about 85 per cent of infants who are born at less than 34 weeks gestation.
Royal Women’s Hospital Head of Clinical Research Development, Professor Lex Doyle, said the latest findings were very exciting. “Of all the medicines we use in neonatal intensive care, this is the first that we have proven will actually reduce the rate of longterm disability in very premature babies.”
The large clinical trial commenced eight years ago and caffeine therapy is now being used routinely in Victorian neonatal intensive care units.
The Women’s is leading the trial in Australia and the Mercy Hospital for Women, Royal Newcastle Hospital and the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Adelaide, are also participating in the research.
The Caffeine for Apnea of Prematurity (CAP) project enrolled 2,006 premature infants in nine countries, born between October 1999 and October 2004. All children will be reassessed at five years to obtain more precise information on their development as they approach school age.
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