• Research Projects

• The Lancet (external link)
• BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (external link)

Key achievements

Since Tommy’s started in 1992 we have funded 64 individual research projects. On this page we feature a few of the discoveries and achievements that Tommy's researchers from across the country have made. For more information about projects that Tommy's researchers are working on now have a look at our research projects page.

Tommy's sets up the UK's only maternal & fetal research centres

Professor Lucilla Poston was appointed by Tommy's as the UK's 1st Professor of Maternal & Fetal Health in 1995, leading a research team at St Thomas' Hospital in London.

Tommy's 2nd Professor of Maternal & Fetal Health, Professor Philip Baker, was appointed in 2001 to lead a research team at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester.

Both Tommy's research centres contain multi-disciplinary teams consisting of doctors, midwives and scientists working in a unique environment.

Tommy's Professor receives international acclaim

In 2005, Professor Philip Baker (Tommy's Professor at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester) received the prestigious President’s Achievement Award of the Society for Gynecologic Investigation (SGI). The SGI is leading scientific organisation in obstetrics and gynaecology. It has around 1,000 scientist members from around the world and it gives this award every year to a member of the Society whose record in scientific investigation is outstanding. This is the first time the award has left North America and it highlights how important the research team at the Manchester centre has become internationally.

Vitamins in pre-eclampsia (VIP) trial

A small trial, funded by Tommy’s, found that the incidence of pre-eclampsia was dramatically decreased (by more than 50%) in high-risk women if they took high doses of vitamins C and E compared with high-risk women who did not take the vitamins.  Following these results the Tommy’s research team at St Thomas’ Hospital in London gained funding for a large clinical trial to assess if this finding was true and could be proven in a larger trial. The Vitamins in Pre-eclampsia (VIP) trial recruited more than 2,400 women who were at high-risk of developing pre-eclampsia – giving half of them high doses of vitamins C and E and the other half placebo (dummy) tablets.  These women started taking the tablets between 14 and 22 weeks of pregnancy and took them every day until they had their babies.

The results of the trial (published in the high-profile medical journal The Lancet - to view the abstract click on this link http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS014067360668433X/abstract) show that these high doses of vitamins C and E do not prevent pre-eclampsia in high-risk women, actually increasing the chances of having a low-birthweight baby, although the likely affect on their long-term health is negligible.

This result means that women at high risk of developing pre-eclampsia should not take high doses of vitamins C and E in pregnancy.  The small doses of vitamins found in pregnancy-specific multivitamin preparations may infer a slight benefit to the outcome of the pregnancy. Click here for more information about pre-eclampsia.

To find out more about the trial, please click here to contact Tommy's midwives.

The UK's 1st accurate blood pressure monitor for pre-eclampsia

New research has led to the approval of the UK’s first accurate blood pressure test for the life-threatening pregnancy complication, pre-eclampsia. Results of the research by Tommy's research team were published in the International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in July 2005 (click here to view the article abstract online http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2005.00617.x)

The blood pressure device, Microlife 3BTO-A, is already on sale to the general public but this new research validates its use for pregnancy. Pregnant women at home, who wish to monitor themselves for fluctuations in blood pressure, could even use it. Until now, women have had to rely on midwives to check their blood pressure when they visit for monthly antenatal appointments, so have no way of accurately recording their blood pressure themselves on a day by day basis.

Increasing our understanding of miscarriage

Initial integration of the blood vessels from the mother's womb and the placenta is critical to subsequent success of the pregnancy. The placenta supplies nutrients and oxygen to the developing baby and takes waste products away, it is therefore vital that the placenta is functioning well, otherwise the baby may not receive enough nutrition.

For a placenta (and therefore a pregnancy) to be successful it must be well attached to the mother's womb wall and be receiving sufficient blood flow. If a placenta is not well attached to the mother's womb then it may not be providing good blood flow to the baby which can lead to miscarriage and other pregnancy complications.

We are increasing our understanding about how these initial steps happen, so that in the future we can prevent pregnancy complications occuring from placental insufficiency.

Training mannequin developed to assist safe delivery of babies

Tommy's funded a project to develop a training mannequin to enable doctors to practice delivering babies safely. The team (clinicians, professional model makers and engineers) developed a prototype training mannequin for doctors and midwives to receive practical ‘hands on’ training for the management of shoulder dystocia, a dangerous complication of childbirth, where the baby's shoulders become lodged behind the pelvis of the mother.

The mannequin incorporates the pelvis and birth canal of the mother, plus an accurate fetal model of a head, trunk and arms with an articulating neck, shoulders and elbows. The fetal model also includes a pressure gauge across the neck that can alert the user/trainer when potentially nerve damaging and inappropriate traction is being used.

It has been demonstrated that there is a distinct learning gain after training on delivering the mannequin, which will hopefully translate into a reduction in the unnecessary deaths and injuries to babies in deliveries complicated by shoulder dystocia.

Developing a predictive test for pre-eclampsia

Tommy's reseach team at St Thomas' Hospital in London continue to work on the development of a test to identify women who are at risk of developing pre-eclampsia. If these women can be identified before clinical symptoms of pre-eclampsia develop, then there is the opportunity to target healthcare measures towards these women, so that their pregnancies are monitored and early action taken to support their health and that of their baby.