We’re delighted to announce our latest research partnership – with the the Bart’s Research Centre for Women’s Health (BARC) .
BARC was launched in June 2017 and is led by Professors Shakila Thangaratinam and Khalid Khan.
The Centre is funded by Barts Charity and based within Queen Mary University of London at the Whitechapel campus.
The centre team (pictured above) will focus on improving the health of mothers and babies in East London, addressing healthcare challenges such as diabetes, obesity and heavy blood loss during childbirth.
The first BARC study is set to start in January 2018 – “EMmY: Effectiveness and acceptability of myo-inositol nutritional supplement in the prevention of gestational diabetes: a pilot placebo controlled double blind randomised trial”.
EmMY will aim to randomise 200 women who are at risk of developing gestational diabetes, across three sites (Barts Health, Guy’s and St Thomas’, and Central Manchester University NHS Trusts).
Participants will be randomised to receive either 4g of Myo-inositol – a naturally occurring substance produced in the human body that belongs to the vitamin B complex group – or placebo study supplement daily, from the end of the first trimester until delivery.
The pilot will examine rates of recruitment and randomisation to the trial, and rates of adherence to the intervention. Researchers will analyse reasons for participation, non-participation, and non-adherence to the trial protocol. Any preliminary estimates and insight into trial procedures from the EMmY study will then inform a future large-scale trial.
The CLAHRC is supporting the study by providing health economic analysis for the pilot and full trial and assisting with patient and public involvement..
Contact Doris Lanz, BARC Senior Trial Manager for more info at d.lanz@qmul.ac.uk
