University of Utah Health has been named the nation’s first Stillbirth Center of Excellence — a designation embracing an initiative to reduce both the number and the toll of stillbirths in the U.S.

Nearly 24,000 babies are stillborn each year in the United States. This equates to about one of every 160 pregnancies.

Why do stillbirths happen? 

There are a few reasons, including:

• Placentas that fail
• Genetic or physical abnormalities
• Infection
• Umbilical cord problems
• The mother's medical challenges or hypertension
• Often, why the baby died is not discovered

Our resident family reporter Lois Collins talked to mothers who experienced miscarriage or stillbirths about the trauma around that experience earlier this year. 

“I don’t think you ever get over it. I think you grow around it," Nicole Atzeni, one of the mothers told Lois. "Grief is interesting. I think you learn how to deal with it and it changes throughout the years, the different amounts that you feel it. You learn how to live with it.”

How the center could help:

“Our goal is to spread this as much throughout the country as we possibly can,” said center co-director Dr. Bob Silver.

Among the center’s 10-year goals:

• Cutting the U.S. stillbirth rate in half
• Halving the disparities in stillbirth rates
• Doubling the number of U.S. families that receive comprehensive bereavement support after a stillbirth
• Making sure that at least three-fourths of the nation’s stillbirths are evaluated to find the potential causes
• Increasing public awareness
• Positioning the U.S. as a leader in prevention, care and research

Read more about how the designation embraces initiative to reduce the number and the toll of stillbirths.

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