A remodeled drug could save the lives of many new mothers – WHO

A revamped drug that can withstand the extreme heat and remain effective for 1,000 days could "revolutionize the ability" to keep new mothers alive, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The drug, known as thermostable carbetocin, helps prevent bleeding, sometimes fatal after delivery.

It could potentially be given to millions of mothers around the world.

Existing drugs can help but hot, humid conditions in many countries can prevent life-saving medicines from working well.

About 70,000 women die each year due to severe bleeding after childbirth. These so-called postpartum haemorrhages also increase the risk of their baby's death during the first month of life.

To address the problem, the WHO is currently offering an injection of oxytocin to all women who give birth badlly.

But it is recommended that the drug be kept between two and eight degrees from the time it is manufactured, which, according to WHO experts, is often unachievable in countries with limited access to refrigeration and unreliable sources of energy.

& # 39; Very good news & # 39;

In the essay, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, nearly 30,000 women in 10 countries around the world randomly received an injection of carbetocin or thermostable oxytocin immediately after childbirth .

The researchers found that in most cases, both drugs were also effective in preventing excessive bleeding after birth.

Experts say this paves the way for thermostable carbetocin to offer to all women who deliver badlly in more than 90 countries around the world.

And they say that it could be particularly useful in areas where oxytocin is of inferior quality or has been tampered with, so that there is less of the active ingredient than that which is desirable.

The WHO expert, Dr. Metin Gulmezoglu, said that developing a drug that could function in hot, humid conditions was "very good news for the millions of women who give birth in some parts of the world without access to reliable refrigeration. "

He added, "This will help save many lives of mothers in low-income countries where most deaths occur."

And the director general of the WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said: "It's a really encouraging new development that can revolutionize our ability to keep mothers and babies alive."

However, the drug is currently only available for use in clinical trials. Regulators will now see if the drug can be approved for wider use.

The WHO experts hope that it will be available in some countries early next year.

The trial is a collaboration between WHO, MSD for Mothers and Ferring Pharmaceuticals.