This post is sponsored by Cervilenz Inc.
November is a time for thanks. Every day, I am thankful for my husband, Jim, and our three healthy children — Emmett, Riley, and Allie. But, this time of year is a mixed blessing for me.
November is Prematurity Awareness Month. Every minute of every day, a baby is born prematurely. That’s 1 of 8 babies, and it’s the leading cause of infant death. On October 29th, 1993, my twin daughters were born three months too soon. Annabelle died at birth. Isabelle lived for only 10 months. I’m grateful for all the time and effort of so many people to bring attention to this huge problem of prematurity.
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I’ve dedicated endless hours to spreading hope, supporting other families like ours, and helping raise money for research. This year is different because there’s a new message — and it’s great news. Researchers have found a way to prevent prematurity for some pregnant women. A study sponsored by the NIH showed that daily vaginal progesterone started mid-pregnancy for women diagnosed with a short cervix reduced their rate of prematurity by 45%.
For such a complex, multi-factorial disease, this research offers a simple solution. Measure cervical length to identify high-risk patients. Treat those high-risk patients with vaginal progesterone. The result: fewer premature births and healthier babies.
When I met Dean Koch in 2008, just after he founded Cervilenz Inc., he told me this day would come as he showed me the CerviLenz® device. This low-tech yet sophisticated device makes it easy to measure cervical length during any prenatal visit. CerviLenz is going to be part of the solution to the worldwide epidemic of prematurity. That’s why I’m proud to help bring this novel device to market.
The stakes are too high to rely on someone’s finger to estimate cervical length. There’s plenty of evidence that abdominal ultrasound isn’t reliable either. Transvaginal ultrasound can provide an accurate cervical length measurement, but this high-tech exam is not available for all pregnant women in the United States, much less abroad. CerviLenz is cost-effective innovation.
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The annual economic toll of prematurity in the U.S. is $26.2 billion. Preventive medicine saves money. One cost analysis showed a savings of $19.5 million for every 100,000 pregnant women evaluated for short cervix with transvaginal ultrasound and treated with vaginal progesterone as appropriate. CerviLenz can help save even more.
This November, I’m thankful for Dr. Rosalyn Baxter-Jones who invented CerviLenz, my colleagues at Cervilenz Inc. who all share my passion for fighting prematurity, and the company’s investors (Arboretum Ventures, Chrysalis Ventures, JumpStart Ventures, and North Coast Angel Fund) who give hope to moms like me.
Medical professionals, learn more at cervilenz.com.
Moms-to-be, learn more at measure2besure.com.
Melanie Sweeney is Vice President of Marketing at Cervilenz Inc.
