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Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) Supplementation in High Risk Pregnancies

Placebo Controlled Trial of Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) Supplementation in High Risk Pregnancies

Status
UNKNOWN
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04069195
Enrollment
210
Registered
2019-08-28
Start date
2019-02-01
Completion date
2020-12-01
Last updated
2019-08-28

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Inflammation, Pregnancy Related

Keywords

Inflammation, DHA, Pregnancy, preterm, overweight

Brief summary

Purpose: Determine the effects of maternal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation during pregnancy on levels of DHA, synaptamide (novel anti-inflammatory metabolite), and inflammatory biomarkers during pregnancy and at delivery Research Design: Double blind randomized placebo-controlled study of maternal DHA supplementation during pregnancy. Methodology /Technical Approach: Investigators plan to enroll 100 pregnant women with a high risk pregnancy related to (1) a pre-pregnancy Body Mass Index (BMI) of ≥30.0 kg/m2 and/or (2) a history of prior preterm delivery at ≤35+6 weeks gestation. Women will be enrolled between the 8th and 14th week of pregnancy and randomized to receive a once daily DHA supplement (DSM Nutritional Products, Columbia Maryland, DHA capsule 441mg/cap) or a placebo (DSM Nutritional Products, Columbia Maryland, Corn Oil/Soybean oil 50/50 mix) for the duration of the pregnancy. DHA is an omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) and placebo composed of omega-6 LCPUFA's. Investigators will measure maternal levels of plasma DHA, Synaptamide and inflammatory biomarkers at enrollment, at 26-30 weeks of pregnancy, and from cord blood at delivery. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics will be collected for each mother from pregnancy onset until discharge following delivery. The infant health record and parental report will be reviewed to record clinical data from birth to 12 months corrected age for short term health outcomes potentially related to inflammation-related morbidities, including growth and development, acute infection requiring hospital admission, and any allergic disorder. All plasma samples will be processed at Dr. Kim's NIAAA/NIH laboratories using high-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

Detailed description

All pregnant women meeting the inclusion/exclusion criteria will be identified at the time of their regular OB appointments between the 8th and the 14th week of pregnancy (+/- 3 days) Research team members will approach potential subjects to explain the study and obtain consent for their participation Patients who give their consent for enrollment will be asked to complete a dietary survey at the time of enrollment Patients will be given a paper script for study drug to be taken to the Walter Reed Military Medical Center pharmacy to obtain study drug The Investigational Pharmacy will randomize the patients in double blinded fashion to the intervention group or placebo group. Patients in the intervention group will recieve a \ 1000mg capsule containing \ 400mg of DHA. This is not standard of care and is being done for research purposes only Patients in the Placebo group will recieve a \ 1000mg capusle containing no DHA and filled with 50:50 mix of corn and soybean oils. This oil is ubiquitous in the american diet and only a very small amount of additional oil will be ingested for study purposes. Giving pregnant women this oil is not standard of care and is being done for research purposes only The placebo and intervention drugs will be packaged in the same capsule membrane and will be indistinguishable by color, shape, or taste. Patients will be instructed to take 1 capule PO daily until their child is delivered Patients will be issued a 3 month supply of study drug at enrollment and will get refills from the investigational pharmacy ≤5ml of whole blood will be obtained from each subject at enrollment and at 26-30 weeks gestation (+/- 3 days), as part of a routine blood sampling. It is standard of care to collect blood at this point in pregnancy for lab evaluation. The additional tube of blood collected for this study is for research purposes only and not part of the standard of care. This sample will be centrifuged, and the separated plasma will be labeled and frozen at -80° C pending transport to Dr. Kim's lab at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) for bulk analyses. At delivery, ≤5ml of umbilical cord blood will be obtained from an umbilical artery and from the umbilical vein. These samples will be processed and stored in a similar fashion as the earlier samples. Cord blood is a medical waste product, and collection will therefore have no adverse effect for either mother or newborn. It is standard of care to collect cord blood by OB request for lab evaluation. Collecting additional cord blood for this study anaylsis is for research purposes only All enrollees will complete a dietary survey upon enrollment at 8-14 weeks (+/- 3 days), at 26-30th week of pregnancy (+/- 3 days), and during the delivery admission. This survey will also include the subject's self-report on compliance with taking the study supplement All plasma samples collected will be processed at Dr. Kim's National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism/ National Insititute of Health (NIAAA/NIH) laboratories The Cytokine Assays for IL-6, Il-10, TNF- alpha will be run in Dr Kim's lab using Ensyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) testing The DHA and Synaptamide levels will be analyzed in Dr. Kim's lab using High performance liquid chromatrography with tandem mass spectrometry All babies from multiple birth pregnancies will be enrolled in this study The offspring of enrolled women will be followed through 12 months corrected age to assess the longer term outcomes of study intervention Information will be collected from the maternal medical record at time of enrollment, infant delivery and postpartum discharge. Information will be collected from the infant medical record at time of birth discharge, and 12 months corrected age.

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTDHA supplement

Patient's will be randomized to recieve either DHA or 50:50 corn oil/soybean oil supplement as a once daily supplement to be taken from enrollment through delivery of their infant

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTCorn Oil: Soybean Oil

Patient's will be randomized to recieve either DHA or 50:50 corn oil/soybean oil supplement as a once daily supplement to be taken from enrollment through

Sponsors

National Institutes of Health (NIH)
CollaboratorNIH
DSM Nutritional Products, Inc.
CollaboratorINDUSTRY
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
CollaboratorNIH
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
Lead SponsorFED

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
QUADRUPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)

Masking description

Double blinded, randomized, placebo controlled

Intervention model description

Double Blinded, Randomized, Placebo controlled

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* regnant female military health care beneficiaries ≥18 years of age * Between the 8th and 14th week of pregnancy at enrollment * BMI of ≥30.0 kg/m2 and/or history of previous preterm delivery at \<36 weeks gestation * Planning to deliver at WRNMMC * DEERS-eligible * All infants born to mothers enrolled in this study who do not meet any

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Measure DHASample obtained between 8-14 weeks of pregnancyMeasurement of maternal plasma DHA using tandem mass spec
Measure synaptamideSample obtained between 8-14 weeks of pregnancyMeasurement of maternal plasma synaptamide using tandem mass spec
Measure inflammatory biomarkersSample obtained between 8-14 weeks of pregnancyMeasurement of plasma cytokine levels using ELISA human cytokine panel

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Maternal deathFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 6 months after infant deliveryNumber of maternal deaths in intervention group vs placebo group
Pre-eclampsiaFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 42 weeks of pregnancy or day of infant delivery, whichever happens firstPresence or absence of pre-eclampsia in intervention vs placebo groups
chorioamionitisFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 42 weeks of pregnancy or day of infant delivery, whichever happens firstPresence or absence of chorioamionitis in intervention vs placebo groups
Gestational Diabetes MelitusFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 42 weeks of pregnancy or day of infant delivery, whichever happens firstPresence or absence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus in intervention vs placebo groups
non-gestational Diabetes mellitusFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 42 weeks of pregnancy or day of infant delivery, whichever happens firstPresence or absence of non-Gestational Diabetes Mellitus in intervention vs placebo groups
Preterm Premature Rupture of MembranesFrom enrollment in study at 8-14 weeks of pregnancy until 42 weeks of pregnancy or day of infant delivery, whichever happens firstPresence or absence of Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes in intervention vs placebo groups
going past due datesduring last month of pregnancyPresence or absence of going past due dates in intervention vs placebo groups
Placental pathologyat time of deliveryAny placental pathology documented on maternal delivery summary in intervention vs. placebo groups
Head circumference at birthAt time of infant birthMeasurement of head circumference at birth in placebo vs. Intervention
Length at birthAt time of infant birthMeasurement of length at birth in placebo vs. Intervention
weight at birthAt time of infant birthMeasurement of weight at birth in placebo vs. Intervention
Gestational age at birthAt time of infant birthGestational age at infant birth in both placebo and intervention groups
APGAR score at 1 minAt time of infant birthAPGAR score assessed for infants in both placebo and intervention groups
APGAR score at 5 minAt time of infant birthAPGAR score assessed for infants in both placebo and intervention groups
Resuscitation beyond warm/dry stimulate at birthAt time of infant birthPresence or absence of any resuscitation beyond warm, dry and stimulate at infant birth
Presence or absence or requirement for respiratory assistance within the first 24 hours after birthFrom NICU admission to 24 hours after birthPresence or absence of any respiratory support outside of the delivery room in first 24 hours of birth placebo vs intervention groups
Days of antibiotic exposure during birth hospitalizationDuring birth admission up to 8 months of chronologic age or discharge from hospital whichever happens soonerNumber of 24hr periods in which infant was exposed to antibiotics during birth hospitalization
NICU admissionWithin the first 5 days of infant's lifePresence or absence of NICU admission in placebo vs intervention groups
Duration of birth admissionBirth through 12 months of age or infant discharge, whichever occurs soonerNumber of 24hr periods patient was present in hospital during birth admission
Requirement for phototherapy during birth admissionBirth through 14 days of infant lifePresence or absence of phototherapy during birth admission in placebo vs intervention groups
Culture proven sepsisFrom birth through 12 months or until infant discharge whichever occurs soonerPresence or absence of culture proven sepsis during birth admission in placebo vs intervention groups
Infant DeathFrom birth through 12 months or until infant discharge whichever occurs soonerNumber of infants that died during birth hospitalization in both the placebo and intervention groups
Weight at infant hospital dischargeAt time of infant's first discharge from hospital or at 12 months corrected, whichever comes firstWeight at infant hospital discharge in placebo vs intervention group
head circumference at infant hospital dischargeAt time of infant's first discharge from hospital or at 12 months corrected, whichever comes firsthead circumference at infant hospital discharge in placebo vs intervention group
Length at infant hospital dischargeAt time of infant's first discharge from hospital or at 12 months corrected, whichever comes firstLength at infant hospital discharge in placebo vs intervention group
Feeding plan at infant dischargeAt 12 months chronological if still admitted or at infant discharge, whichever occurs soonerFeeding plan documented as exclusive breastfeeding, formula and breastfeeding or exclusive formula feeding
Infant diagnosis in medical recordat 12 months correctedCompare infant diagnosis recorded in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
infant weight at 6 months corrected ageat 6 months correctedWeight at 6 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
infant weight at 12 months corrected ageat 12 months correctedWeight at 12 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
head circumferene weight at 6 months corrected ageat 6 months correctedhead circumferene at 6 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
head circumference weight at 12 months corrected ageat 12 months correctedhead circumference at 12 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
Length weight at 6 months corrected ageat 6 months correctedLength at 6 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
Length weight at 12 months corrected ageat 12 months correctedLength at 12 months corrected age documented in medical record in placebo vs intervention group
Number of outpatient visits for infant during first 12 months correctedbirth through12 months correctedNumber of outpatient visits recorded during first 12 months corrected in placebo vs. intervention groups
Failure to thrive in for infantbirth through 12 months correctedPresence or absence of diagnosis failure to thrive in medical record through first 12 months corrected in placebo vs intervention
number of inpatient days for infant through 12 months correctedbirth through 12 months correctednumber of inpatient days for infant through 12 months corrected in intervention vs placebo
Maternal Gestational weight gain at end of pregnancy in placebo vs. DHA supplement groupsAt time of infant deliveryCompare maternal gestational weight gain at the end of pregnancy between intervention and placebo groups
Number of antibiotic prescriptions for infant through first 12 months correctedbirth through 12 months correctedNumber of antibiotic prescriptions for infant through first 12 months corrected in intervention vs placebo
Documented infant feeding plan through first yearbirth through 12 months correctedDocumented infant feeding plan through first year. Exclusive breastfeeding, formula and breastfeeding or exclusive formula
Indication of infant developmental delay in medical record from birth through 12 months correctedbirth through 12 months correctedPresence or absence of any indication of developmental delay recorded by physician in the medical record through 12 months corrected in intervention vs placebo groups
Infant delivery methodAt time of infant deliveryCompare delivery method used to delivery infant between intervention and placebo groups
Delivery complicationsat time of infant deliveryCompare any documented delivery complications between intervention and placebo groups

Countries

United States

Contacts

Primary ContactPeter F Knickerbocker, DO
peteknickerbocker@gmail.com215-298-2476
Backup ContactCarl Hunt, MD
carl.hunt@usuhs.edu3017675514

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026