Product/Service Development

Preeclampsia (PE) remains one of the leading global causes of maternal death and disability. Under this proposal, we seek to incorporate a new, innovative design feature to our prototype that will further improve its usability by enabling midstream urine collection and thus align the test process to that of a common one-step, at-home pregnancy test. No current PE diagnostic test, including the current protein-only dipstick, allows for such a simple test process.

Despite known benefits of Kangaroo Care (KC), uptake is low. KC has been shown to promote healthy growth related to reductions in hypothermia, sepsis, and death [1]. It is highly beneficial for 10 mil premature or Low Birth Weight Indian babies. Parents do not practice adequate KC in hospital or home; doing it incorrectly/for significantly short episodes. Unfortunately, KC promoters do not have tools to measure amount/quality of KC received aside from parents' reporting, which is unreliable.

60% of 9 mil Indian low-weight babies are born at hospitals with limited or no specialized neonatal care; this makes transport to higher centers necessary for these neonates. With a lack of reliable transport options parents are often forced to use unorganized systems like motorbikes without any transport stabilization. Evidence suggests that mortality in transported newborns is much higher than inborn babies due to transport-induced hypothermia, hypoglycemia, hypoxia, and apnea. [1, 2, 3, 4].

This project will allow the design, construction, laboratory testing, and initial field trial, of our novel solar powered oxygen system.This is the first ever solar powered oxygen system that functions without the need for batteries or inverters.

Postpartum depression (PPD) has an estimated prevalence rate of about 24.4% amongst Indian women, or over 6 million women per year [1]. Most cases go undetected due to lack of awareness and stigma. Research has identified India-specific triggers for PPD including son-preference mentality and problems with spouse or in-laws. We've seen this first-hand in our work with newborns in Indian govt NICUs and have seen how it can affect the mother and the critical newborn.

Maternal mortality ratios in Ghana referral hospitals remain as high as 957-1,004/100,000 live births. Poor outcomes and dismal quality of care stem from delayed identification of complications upon arrival; women wait can hours or even days for evaluation and treatment. Kybele-Ghana will implement its obstetric triage program to six referral hospitals over two years, ultimately reaching 80% of Ghana's tertiary hospitals.

Malaria is a scourge of pregnant women in developing countries, causing maternal, perinatal and infant mortality. Sanaria's PfSPZ Vaccine prevents malaria infection both in laboratory settings and in Africa. This project will test if the vaccine prevents infection during pregnancy and improves newborn outcomes in order to determine the protective effects of vaccination against the background of a pregnancy registry study enrolling ~900 women each year in Ouelessebougou, Mali.

Newborns are unable to regulate their body temperature often leading to hypothermia, a condition affecting up to 85% of newborns globally and approximately 4-12 million Indian newborns yearly. The BEMPU Hypothermia Alert Device is a newborn temperature-monitoring wristband that alerts caregivers if their newborn is hypothermic enabling intervention well before complications or death can occur.

Globally, mobile populations, such as long-distance truck drivers and female sex workers are exposed to numerous health risks due to risk factors such as risky sexual behaviours, low risk perception and poor access to health services. Mobility is an important factor that impacts health vulnerability. Beyond the reach of traditional health systems and away from home for extended periods, mobile populations are often vulnerable to illness and more likely to take health risks.

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