Healthy Infant Development Project

Timing, Duration and Severity of Infant Iron Deficiency: Developmental Impacts

The Healthy Infant Development Project will determine if providing micronutrient supplements to mothers during pregnancy and infants in the first 9 months fosters healthy behavior and development in babies.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

Iron deficiency (ID) is the most common single nutrient disorder in the world, and pregnant women and infants are at highest risk. With long-lasting differences in prior studies, effects on the developing brain and infant behavior and development are among the most worrisome concerns. The proposed study will determine developmental/ behavioral effects of preventing ID depending on timing (Aim 1) and duration (Aim 2) of iron supplementation (i.e., pre- and/or early postnatally). The study will relate outcomes to severity of ID (Aim 3) and consider reversibility of effects with iron therapy, depending on timing (Aim 4). We expect different neurobehavioral effects when ID occurs or is prevented/treated during different phases of brain development (proliferation and growth phase primarily prenatally and regional diversification and interconnection largely in infancy). The project entails 2 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to support causal inferences about preventing ID pre- and/or early postnatally. The project builds on a large US CDC-supported study (Pregnancy Nutrition Study) involving pregnant women in rural China (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00133744). Study groups of infants in the proposed RCTs combined are a) pre- and early postnatal iron, b) prenatal iron, c) early postnatal iron, and d) neither (n = 500/group, total 2000, at study end). Iron status and sensitive sensory, motor, cognitive, language, and social-emotional outcomes will be assessed at birth, 9 and 18 mo. Results of Aims 1 & 2 will determine the best window to prevent ID effects and whether breast-fed infants benefit from iron before 6 mo. Aim 3 (severity) will determine the level of ID at which different developmental domains are adversely affected. If ill effects of ID without anemia are documented, there could be major policy implications; screening is currently only for anemia. Detecting more or less vulnerable domains may also point to other interventions in addition to iron therapy. To identify reversibile effects, depending on age of treatment (Aim 4), outcomes at 18 mo will be compared for infants 1) never iron-deficient, 2) poor iron status at birth and assigned to postnatal iron, 3) maternal IDA (anemia) treated in the 1st or 2nd trimester, 4) infant IDA treated at 9 mo, and 5) IDA treated at 18 mo. The results will be highly relevant to global practice and policy regarding ID, which differentially affects poor and/or minority women and infants everywhere.

The project is expected to continue with a 5-year follow-up (Nov 2014- Oct 2019).

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

2371

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

      • Beijing, China, 100034
        • Peking University First Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

1 day to 5 days (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

- Full-term healthy neonates born to study mothers from CDC's Prenatal Nutrition Study with randomly selected lot numbers.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • birth weight < 2500 g
  • gestational age ≤ 37 wk
  • major perinatal complications
  • major congenital anomaly
  • multiple birth.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: a
pre- and early postnatal iron

Prenatally: pills by mouth, one per day, from the first prenatal visit until delivery, 400 mcg folic acid, 30 mg Fe.

Postnatally: liquid by mouth, once per day, from 6 weeks old until 9 months old, 1 mg/kg/day Fe, 1500 IU vitamin A, 500 IU vitamin D.

Experimental: b
iron prenatal only

Prenatally: pills by mouth, one per day, from the first prenatal visit until delivery, 400 mcg folic acid, 30 mg Fe.

Postnatally: liquid by mouth, once per day, from 6 weeks old until 9 months old, 1500 IU vitamin A, 500 IU vitamin D.

Experimental: c
iron early postnatal only

Prenatally: pills by mouth, one per day, from the first prenatal visit until delivery, 400 mcg folic acid.

Postnatally: liquid by mouth, once per day, from 6 weeks old until 9 months old, 1 mg/kg/day Fe, 1500 IU vitamin A, 500 IU vitamin D.

Active Comparator: d
no iron pre- or postnatal

Prenatally: pills by mouth, one per day, from the first prenatal visit until delivery, 400 mcg folic acid.

Postnatally: liquid by mouth, once per day, from 6 weeks old until 9 months old, 1500 IU vitamin A, 500 IU vitamin D.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Infant behavior and development
Time Frame: 9 and 18 months
9 and 18 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Infant anemia
Time Frame: 9 and 18 months
9 and 18 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Betsy Lozoff, MD, University of Michigan
  • Study Director: Li Ming, MD, Peking University First Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

November 1, 2009

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2014

Study Completion (Actual)

June 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 11, 2008

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 11, 2008

First Posted (Estimate)

February 13, 2008

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

October 29, 2014

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 28, 2014

Last Verified

March 1, 2014

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Iron Deficiency Anemia

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