STUDIES
HELIX
Hypothermia for Encephalopathy in Low and Middle income Countries (HELIX ) Trial
Although cooling is the standard of care for neonatal encephalopathy in high-income countries, the safety and efficacy of cooling in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) - which shoulder 99% of the disease burden - is unclear. A total of 408 encephalopathic babies will be randomised to cooling or usual care, from three countries (India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh). Outcome measures are based on 3 Tesla MRI and MR spectroscopy at 2 weeks after birth, and death/neurodisability at 18 months after birth. HELIX is the largest ever cooling trial in the world, and the only such trial to use MR spectroscopy biomarkers across multi-vendor platforms.
Epilepsy is one of the leading causes of disabilities in India, affecting more than 12 million people here. It often debilitates the lives of those affected and takes a massive toll on the socio-economic ecosystem. A significant number of epilepsy cases are caused by brain injuries in babies during childbirth. We at PREVENT (Prevention of Epilepsy by reducing Neonatal Encephalopathy) study, believe that we could help reduce epilepsy by preventing brain injuries sustained during childbirth.
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Leading researchers in obstetrics, midwifery, neonatal medicine, epilepsy, neurology, public health and health economics from the UK, and India came together with the common goal of preventing epilepsy in new-born babies. This team, in collaboration with three large medical college hospitals, Bangalore Medical College, Government Calicut Medical College and Karnataka Medical College will study 60,000 pregnant women for the next four years and introduce a ‘care bundle’ during labour and delivery to reduce brain injuries in babies. This research is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research and Innovation for Global Health Transformation (RIGHT) program