Melbourne study discovers new way to predict chronic lung disease in premature babies
Melbourne researchers have discovered a blood test that can help predict which pre-term babies will go on to develop chronic lung disease.
Transcript
00:00Samantha Nation cherishes every moment her son Atticus is not in a hospital.
00:07It was torture going up there seeing your baby like that every day.
00:11Atticus was born three months early and came into the world weighing just 800 grams.
00:17After five months in the neonatal unit, attached to monitors, wires and tubes,
00:22he developed chronic lung disease and couldn't expel liquid from his lungs.
00:27We were told we don't think he's going to come through this and pretty much start saying your goodbyes to him.
00:38But against all odds, little Atticus survived.
00:42Before now, babies could only be tested for lung disease at 36 weeks old,
00:46leaving parents like Samantha and Warwick without answers for weeks.
00:51This makes it incredibly difficult, not just for parents who have that unsurity,
00:55but also for the doctors that need to treat them.
00:58A world first discovery is changing that.
01:01Scientists at the Murdoch Children's Research Institute have discovered
01:05specific proteins in the blood can indicate which babies will develop the disease
01:10and the test can be done within three days of birth.
01:14And so this way we'll be able to give the right treatment to the right child at the right time.
01:19Samantha hopes it means other parents with preterm babies can breathe a little easier.
01:24I am so excited for it. I think this is absolutely fantastic.
01:28If they can detect this early on, it can help prevent families to go through what we went through.
01:35In the next few months, the blood test will be replicated in a larger clinical study
01:40involving 550 babies across all neonatal units in Victoria.
01:45It's hoped that will lead to the discovery of new treatments.