Maternal Fetal Medicine Research Team Secures $95,500 in Victorian Medical Research Acceleration Funding

Header image, left to right: Head of MFM Research, Professor Joanne Said; Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery, Adjunct Professor Shane Crowe; Member for Laverton, Ms Sarah Connolly MP; Victorian Minister for Education and Minister for Medical Research, Deputy Premier Ben Carroll; Western Health CEO, Professor Russell Harrison; and Assistant Dean of the Western Health Centre for Healthcare Research and Education, Victoria University, Professor Alan Hayes.

The Western Health Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) research team, alongside the Western Health Foundation, have secured $95,500 in funding to run a clinical trial testing an antibiotic for treating Amniotic Fluid Sludge (AFS) – which previous studies have indicated may be a major contributor to increasing the risk of preterm births.

Announced in July this year, the Victorian Medical Research Acceleration Fund (VMRAF) grants have been awarded to 10 projects across 8 organisations including hospitals, medical research institutes and universities.

Head of Maternal Fetal Medicine at Western Health, Professor Joanne Said, is leading the grant-winning project.

“Through our pilot trial, we hope to establish the effectiveness of an antibiotic in reducing the risk of preterm births, saving costs to the Australian health system as well as improving health outcomes for mothers and their babies.” says Said.

Every year in Australia, 28,000 infants are born preterm (before 37 weeks’ gestation). This takes both an emotional toll on new parents and represents a significant cost to the healthcare system.

Previous research suggests Amniotic Fluid Sludge (AFS) - a material found inside the amniotic sac, increases the risk of preterm birth. Some studies have suggested using broad-spectrum antibiotic, Azithromycin (well known to be safe in pregnancy), might prevent preterm birth in women with AFS, leading to it being prescribed frequently in these cases.

Left to right: Victorian Minister for Education and Minister for Medical Research, Deputy Premier Ben Carroll; Member for Laverton, Ms Sarah Connolly MP; and Assistant Dean of the Western Health Centre for Healthcare Research and Education, Victoria University, Professor Alan Hayes.

However, there is no definitive evidence in the form of a randomised controlled trial to support this. With the increasing utilisation of this antibiotic for AFS, the team plan to undertake an urgent randomised controlled trial to determine whether azithromycin can significantly reduce preterm births.

Thanks to the VMRAF grant, the team’s research, set to be complete in 2026, could help more babies reach their full term.

In a post on LinkedIn about Professor Said’s project, Victoria’s Deputy Premier, Ben Carroll, said, “We want to give every child the healthiest start in life.” and that is what this study aims to achieve.

Well done to Joanne and the team!