A Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) on Prematurity
was created to advise the National March of Dimes
Campaign (membership listed in the Appendix). TheSAC
has interdisciplinary representation of national experts
in PTB research and treatment, from fields of obstetricsgynecology,
pediatrics, nursing and public health, with
representation from the 3 campaign partner organizations.
It was charged to develop a national research
agenda that included prioritized recommendations. After
deliberation, the SAC concluded that research efforts
should focus primarily on cause and prevention of very
preterm birth (!32 weeks). The rationale was that the
study of the most severely affected would likely be more
biologically distinct and thus most amenable to discovery,
and may translate into the greatest impact on child health.
Four subcommittees were formed to address the interrelated
research categories of: basic science, clinical management,
social and behavioral interactions, and racial/
ethnic disparities. Committee processes included formal
reviews of extant publications from relevant disciplines,
based on the members’ experience as investigators and
clinicians. External review of the resultant document was
then obtained from additional experts representing the
Prematurity Campaign partner organizations ACOG,
AAP, and AWHONN, as well as the National Institute
of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD),