Seeing the small baby: Advanced imaging in detecting and treating fetal growth restriction

More than 25,000 babies are predisposed to having a bigger left side of the heart and cardiovascular disease even before they are born. This is because they did not receive enough nutrients and/or oxygen during pregnancy and were born too small with a heart that has a relatively bigger left side. This project aims to use a combination of advanced MRI techniques and a nutritional supplement to stop these babies from having heart disease by helping them grow better even before they are born.

Our speaker:
Professor Janna Morrison is and ARC Future Fellow, Director of Health and Biomedical Innovation and Head of the Early Origins of Adult Health Research Group at the University of South Australia and a Fellow of the Cardiovascular Section of the American Physiological Society. She received her PhD from the University of British Columbia in 2001. Her current research focusses on how the fetal cardiovascular system responds to changes in nutrient supply during pregnancy. She was recently awarded a Canadian Institutes of Health Research grant with colleagues from Sick Kids Hospital in Canada to use MRI to study blood flow and oxygenation and their relationship with cardiac development in the growth restricted fetus. She is currently an ARC Future Fellow (2018-21) and holds a Discovery Project (2019-21). She is Reviewing Editor for the Journal of Physiology and Editor of Themed Issues for the Journal of the Developmental Origins of Adult Health.

This event is free and open to the public and will be held under COVID-SAFE guidelines. Seating will be limited. Please only register if you intend to attend in person.

This event will also be live-streamed through MS Teams. Contact HDA if you are unable to attend the event in person and would like to receive the live-streaming link.