Table 3.

Top ten discovery research priorities in discovery for improving newborn health and birth outcomes by 2025 as ranked by 91 experts

Rank	Research questions	Total score (confidence interval)	Agreement between scorers
55	Can stable surfactant with simpler novel modes of administration increase the use and availability of surfactant for preterm babies at risk of respiratory distress syndrome?	71 (62–73)	49
71	Can the method to diagnose fetal distress in labour be more accurate and affordable?	66 (57–71)	49
97	Can strategies for prevention and treatment of intrauterine growth restriction be developed?	64 (51–68)	46
105	Can novel tocolytic agents to delay or stop preterm labour be developed in order to reduce neonatal mortality and morbidity?	63 (54–68)	42
116	Can major causal pathways and risk factors for antepartum stillbirth be identified?	61 (52–66)	43
118	Can novel point of care diagnostics for congenital syphilis be identified in low resource setting to improve management?	60 (53–64)	49
120	Can novel antibiotic or other biological agents be identified?	60 (51–65)	40
121	Can the new method identify intrauterine growth restriction at the early stage (including biomarkers) and predict abnormal postnatal growth and body composition?	60 (52–63)	43
125	Can novel vaccines for maternal immunization be developed and evaluated to prevent newborn infections (eg, GBS, Klebsiella, E coli, Staph)?	60 (51–64)	41
129	Can preterm birth be delayed or averted with antioxidant and/or nutrient supplementation (eg, Vitamin D, omega–3 fatty acids)?	58 (48–63)	42

GBS – group B streptococcus, Staph – staphylococcus