Critical Care & Neurosciences research at the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute

Home / Research / Critical Care & Neurosciences

Helping save lives and improve the long term health and well being of babies and children with serious conditions requiring surgery and acute care, like heart disease, prematurity, brain injury, epilepsy and autism.

Prems thrive on extra care, home delivered

Providing home-based intervention for very premature babies and their families can significantly improve child behaviour and reduce parental stress, according to new Australian research.

Tiny tots beating the odds

14 weeks premature, Alicia weighed just over one kilogram and spent the first three months of her life in hospital.
Looking at Alicia today, it’s hard to imagine she was once small enough to fit into the palms of her mother’s hands.

Sport the leading cause of child head injuries

Sports are the leading cause of head injuries among Victorian children and adolescents presenting to hospital, with Australian Rules football accounting for one in three sports-related head injuries, according to a study by the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute.

‘Hearts and Minds’ study celebrates young patients

A celebration was recently held to thank families involved in a study looking at the impact of heart surgery on babies’ brains.

You breathe a sigh of relief that she’s alive. Then you discover she can’t breathe.

It’s a miracle that little Montana, 16 weeks premature and weighing less than a pound of butter, has actually survived. But she is not out of the woods yet.

Very premature toddlers face social-emotional problems

More than a third of children born very premature display symptoms of social-emotional problems including anxiety and depression by the time they turn two, according to a new study by the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute.

Head injuries strike youngsters

Babies and toddlers are twice as likely to present to hospital with head injuries as older children, according to new research from the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute.

Premature birth: Angus’ story

Realising Angus would be born 15 weeks early and with less than 50 percent chance of survival was terrifying for his parents Michael & Andrea

Common anti-clot drug less safe in children

New research has shown Heparin is neither as safe nor as effective in children as previously thought.

Smell ability linked to ADHD

For the first time, a link has been made between a child’s sense of smell and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Improving diagnosis of childhood stroke

Stroke is among the top ten causes of death in children and over half of stroke survivors will experience long term disabilities.

Sugar helps the pain go away

Babies under intensive care often require frequent painful procedures, but the long-term impact of exposure to pain on a baby's health is not known.

Improved outcomes following heart surgery

Thanks to improved palliative surgical procedures, kids suffering from complex congenital heart defects can now expect to live longer, have a better quality of life and even enjoy some physical activity.

Circus training for children with cerebral palsy

Murdoch Childrens Research Institute recently collaborated with the Brain Research Institute (BRI), Circus Oz and the YMCA to trial an innovative approach to rehabilitation for children with cerebral palsy using circus training.

Improving the future for children with traumatic brain injury

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can alter how a person acts, moves, thinks and learns. It is a relatively common injury, often affecting younger children and adolescents.

Viagra helps critically ill babies

The erectile dysfunction drug Viagra has been found to have a new life saving use.

MRI predicts risks for premature babies

New research has revealed that imaging the brains of premature babies give doctors vital clues as to how those babies will develop as children.

Research