The Neonatology Department and the Perinatal Research Center at Children’s Hospital Colorado strive to produce the most impactful research for the smallest patients. With more than 25 perinatal research awards, our neonatologists drive innovations in the maternal fetal medicine field, regularly make new discoveries and bring practices and techniques from the lab to the bedside.
As one of the most experienced Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) in the country, many of the treatments we have developed are now the standard-of-care across the nation. And in many cases, we’re the first in the world to use these therapies.
What our neonatology research means for kids
As a leader in neonatal research, we focus on each child’s long-term quality of life. Regardless of how rare or critical, our research and innovations provide a deeper level of expertise to treat even the most complex conditions.
Our program is focused on developing the best possible treatment for not only our neonates, but those across the United States. This focus on innovation helps our outcomes consistently remain above the standard, even as the complexity and acuity of our patients’ conditions increases.
“Our goal is to make ground-breaking discoveries through basic, clinical and translational research to improve the lives of newborns.”
-LAURA BROWN, MD
Neonatology innovations
Here, we’re trailblazers. Our doctors, researchers and nurse scientists conduct basic science and clinical and medical education research to advance the field of neonatology and create new treatment options for families. Our team focuses on interventions of premature delivery, improving patient care and outcomes and reducing complications throughout the baby’s lifetime. Our team is laying the foundation for the application of new therapies and approaches in neonatal care.
At Children’s Colorado, we’re early leaders in studying the effects of marijuana in breast milk and determining the complexity and impact of perinatal exposure to THC and other substances of abuse on newborn outcomes. This research takes us a step closer to understanding how much marijuana makes it into breast milk and how long it remains in breast milk.
We’re trailblazers in understanding metabolism in the growth-restricted fetus and further comprehending the processes involved in fetal growth and development. In an ongoing study at the Nutrient Physiology and Metabolism Lab in the Perinatal Research Center, our neonatologists are discovering adaptive mechanisms for fetuses and newborns who are growth-restricted and compromised.
We create standards of care. Our innovative development of using inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) to treat pulmonary hypertension is now the standard treatment and is celebrated for its safety and effectiveness. We’re part of ongoing research testing iNO therapies along with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to treat other conditions such as congenital diaphragmatic hernia.
We collaborate with similar children’s hospitals across the country, working with large patient databases, to determine the best clinical practices for a variety of conditions. This allows us to consistently provide the most advanced treatment and care to improve patient outcomes.
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Do you want to learn more about neonatal research and best practices or how to refer a patient? We can help.