AID grant no. AID/PHA-C-1146 to the Johns Hopkins University to develop an improved means of fertility control for use during the postpartum and lactational period

Johns Hopkins University (JHU) will conduct the research. A group of postpartum lactating women, possibly from the Baltimore-Washington chapter of La Leche League, will participate in a series of baseline clinical trials to investigate the interrelationships between various oral dosages of TRH and maternal milk production and thyroid function, as well as the impact of these dosages upon the production of infertility- conferring hormones and antibodies. The researchers will also develop a new radioimmunoassay for TRH in the women"s peripheral plasma and breast milk. After standardization of all laboratory procedures, field trials will be conducted in Matlab Thana, a rural area in Bangladesh.