So Cal OB-GYN Launches 'BabyKick Alliance' for Stillbirth Education and Prevention; Dr. Diep Nguyen Hopes to Educate Women about the Potentially Life-Saving Kick Count Method Supported by Medical Research.

LOS ANGELES -- Dr. Diep Nguyen, a Los Angeles-based board certified obstetrician and gynecologist and mother of three, announced today that she has established a new stillbirth prevention forum called the BabyKick Alliance. Through this alliance, Dr. Nguyen hopes to create awareness and educate pregnant women about the Kick Count method as a way to achieve a healthy and safe pregnancy and potentially prevent stillbirth.

The Kick Count method allows pregnant women to track significant changes in their baby's fetal movements in order to help them identify potential problems with their pregnancy before the baby's heart rate is affected. Every year, stillbirth claims the lives of approximately 26,000 babies -- 70 per day -- 10 times that of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in the United States, according to the National Institutes of Health. One in 150 pregnancies ends in stillbirth.

"Being the mother of three makes my job caring for mothers with stillbirths particularly poignant," said Dr. Diep Nguyen, OB-GYN and founder of the BabyKick Alliance. "At times, I have wondered whether a life could have been saved if I had been able to intervene earlier. Tragedies have been averted because moms were vigilant about tracking their baby's movements and alerting me to changes that could impact their baby's well-being."

Dr. Nguyen's inspiration for establishing the BabyKick Alliance dates back to the age of 12 when she witnessed the stillbirth of her sister at full term. After 10 years of infertility, her younger sister nearly experienced the same tragedy. Fortunately, her sister had noticed her baby's decreased kicks, which alerted her to seek care. Severely decreased amniotic fluid was diagnosed, which led to the induction of labor and the birth of Dr. Nguyen's niece at 37 weeks.

"My past experience with stillbirth makes my commitment to spreading the word about Kick Counting critical because I have witnessed first hand -- both personally and in my medical practice -- the benefits of monitoring a baby's movements to help achieve a healthy and safe pregnancy," continued Dr. Nguyen.

Though many stillbirths remain unexplained, medical research supports daily fetal Kick Counting as an effective and reliable way to screen fetal well-being during the third trimester. Much of this stillbirth-related research has been led by Dr. Frederik Froen from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and Dr. Ruth Fretts from the Harvard Medical School.

"Through the BabyKick Alliance, I hope to educate pregnant women about the Kick Count method and help decrease the number of stillbirths. I am passionate about this cause and plan to team up with other key partners to communicate the potential life-saving benefits of Kick Counting," continued Dr. Nguyen.

In 2004, Dr. Froen reviewed 24 stillbirth-related studies and concluded that reduced fetal movement is associated with adverse pregnancy outcome in both high- and low-risk pregnancies and that maternal vigilance with fetal movement counting reduces the stillbirth rate, particularly in those stillbirths deemed avoidable. This triggered a renewed look at optimizing the benefits of the Kick Count method in FEMINA (Fetal Movement Intervention Assessment), an ongoing international research collaboration to improve pregnancy outcome. Drs. Fretts and Froen continue their work with the MOMS Study (Maternal Observations and Memories of Stillbirths) with 5,000 women who experienced stillbirths. Fifty percent of the women perceived a gradual decrease in fetal movement several days prior to fetal deaths and 56 percent reported that their first reason to believe their baby was not doing well was decreased fetal movement.

Another recent study reported that 52 percent of stillbirths have suboptimal growth of the baby in utero. That is, the unexplained stillbirths are not sudden, suggesting that there is perhaps a window of time where intervention may prevent stillbirth.

The Kick Count method is also endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists as well as the International Stillbirth Alliance and First Candle/SIDS Alliance, national nonprofit organizations uniting parents, caregivers and researchers worldwide to advance infant health and survival and prevention of stillbirth.

About the BabyKick Alliance (www.babykickalliance.com)

The BabyKick Alliance, located in Los Angeles, was formed in 2006 by Dr. Diep Nguyen, a Los Angeles-based obstetrician and gynecologist. The Alliance is committed to helping women achieve a healthy pregnancy and prevent stillbirth through public awareness, education, and advocacy of the Kick Count method. For the latest research on the Kick Count method and stillbirth prevention, visit the Health Care Professionals section at www.babykickalliance.com. In addition, "Make Every Kick Count," an e-Newsletter dedicated to creating awareness for the Kick Count method and stillbirth prevention, is available free-of-charge online.

BabyKick is a trademark of VoiKex, Inc.