Early Career Investigator

Congratulations to Wesley Jackson, the Early Career Investigator for May 2022. Dr Jackson is an assistant professor in the Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Originally from north Texas, he made his way through medical school at UT Southwestern, then residency in Alabama, alighting at the University of North Carolina for fellowship and his faculty position. He found mentors and pursued a master’s of public health during his fellowship. Those mentors have continued to guide him into his current interests of clinical trials, pharmacokinetics, and epigenetic analyses to assist in drug development. The article in this issue by Dr Jackson and colleagues examines the relationship between epigenetics in the placenta and chronic lung disease in preterm infants. The importance of optimizing health in childhood that this article demonstrates—a common theme throughout this issue—is discussed by Cheng et al. on behalf of the Pediatric Policy Council. Dr Jackson advises others early in their career to find mentors and an environment that allows the development of skills that complement their clinical training. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-022-01996-y, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01868-x, and https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-022-01997-x.

Neurodevelopmental assessment at follow-up

Camerota et al. used a latent profile analysis to group preterm children into mutually exclusive neurodevelopmental profiles. Four discrete profiles were identified, indicating that different targeted intervention strategies could be developed for each group. On a related topic, Woodward et al. found impaired visuospatial working memory in preterm infants born <32 weeks and <1500 g assessed at 12 years of age as well as in infants born <1500 g assessed in adulthood. Both studies support the message in the Comment by Cheng et al. that optimizing health in childhood is important. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01871-2, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01869-w, and https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-022-01997-x.

Expressive writing in boys with isolated orofacial clefts

In this Special Article, Goodwin and Conrad evaluate for the first time the elements of written expression and associated cognitive processes in male children with isolated cleft lip and/or palate (iCL/P). Cognitive processes and expressive writing skills in participants with iCL/P were both within the average range. In a related Insights piece, a mother describes her family’s experience with their son who has a submucous cleft palate. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01619-y and https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01824-9.

Certain birth defects more common in urban areas

Benavides et al. compared the prevalence of a spectrum of birth defects between rural and urban areas in Texas. Using data from the Texas Birth Defects Registry and the Center for Health Statistics, they found that 12 specific defects were less prevalent in rural counties. The defects included ventricular septal defects and hypospadias, implying an association with environmental exposures. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01700-6.

Predicting childhood hypertension with retinal information

In 1460 12-year-old children, He et al. used an integrated model incorporating retinal vasculature diameter, height, and sex to identify hypertension. The area under the curve was 0.777, with a sensitivity of 0.711 and specificity of 0.736. The findings suggest that microcirculation changes may be a key indicator of hypertension. (Photo: Callista Images/Getty.) See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01535-1.

Preterm resuscitation with ECG

This trial of the use of electrocardiogram (ECG) in resuscitation at birth of preterm infants was conducted with 51 infants randomized to either ECG-displayed or ECG-blinded heart rate (HR) assessment. No difference in time to achieve HR ≥100 or oxygen saturation within goal range was noted with the use of ECG. The authors suggest that ECG use during preterm resuscitation is safe and feasible but does not improve outcome and may therefore pose a burden in resource-poor areas. In a Comment responding to this article, Cortes et al. argue that the lack of clinical benefit with faster and more accurate HR readings should not be taken as a lack of usefulness overall. They describe two cases—one of atrioventricular block, the other of electromechanical dissociation—that were diagnosed via delivery room use of ECG. Therefore, the jury is still out on the usefulness of ECG during delivery room resuscitation. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01731-z and https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-022-01953-9.

Hypothermia in piglets with inflammation and hypoxia–ischemia

Martinello et al. examined the effectiveness of hypothermia in piglets preconditioned with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide. Amplitude-integrated electroencephalogram, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, apoptosis, microglial activation, astrogliosis, and cleaved caspase-3 were assessed at 24 and 48 h following the insult. There were no differences in these measures between the hypothermia and normothermia groups. The authors suggest that other immunomodulatory strategies may be beneficial in this clinical scenario. See https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01584-6.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Cynthia F. Bearer and Eleanor J. Molloy.