Reproduction Abstracts

Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) has been a misunderstood and often mismanaged condition. However, in January 2024 HG was integrated into England’s 2024 Women’s Health Strategy—a landmark achievement, which ensures that HG is recognised and represented in the government’s new priorities for women’s health [1]. The inclusion of HG in the 2024 Women’s Health Strategy is just one example of a fleury of HG awareness and activism that has taken place in recent years. In 2023, an international study shed crucial light on the aetiology of morning sickness by demonstrating a link between pregnancy sickness and GDF15—a hormone produced by the foetus that, in high quantities, can elicit nausea and appetite loss [2]. In February, Marlena Fejzo, the American geneticist and lead author of this work, was named one of Time Magazine’s Women of the Year [3]. In this period of unprecedented political support for improving the lives of women affected by HG, this presentation explores the history of HG policy development and discusses the importance of understanding how experiences and understandings of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy have evolved in different national and international contexts across time. In particular, I will focus on two ongoing oral history projects being carried out in the UK and Canada, respectively. The objectives of this research are to build a robust archive of patient and policy voices that will offer a snapshot of how the HG research and policy landscape has changed over the past sixty years and highlight the value history holds in revealing the multi-levelled milieus in which HG appears, lives, and operates.

Keywords: Hyperemesis gravidarum; Health and Social Welfare Policy; Medical History; Patient Voices

References

5. Lord Markham, “Women’s Health Strategy Update: Statement Made on 17 January 2024.” `Department of Health and Social Care, UK Parliament. Statement UIN HLWS188 https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-01-17/hlws188 (Accessed 17 January 2025).

6. Fejzo, M. et al. “GDF15 linked to maternal risk of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.” Nature 625, no. 7996 (2024): 760-767 https:// doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06921-9

7. Ducharme, J. “Her Doctor Dismissed Her Extreme Morning Sickness. So She Found the Gene Behind It.” TIME, 21 February 2024. From https://time.com/collection/women-of-the-year/6691524/marlena-fejzo/ {Accessed 17 January 2025).