Preterm Labor Statistics

Just because I was curious…. Here are some facts that I found interesting!!

v  More than a half million babies in the United States—that's 1 in every 8—are born premature each year. 

v  A baby born at 35 weeks is more likely to have—

·         Jaundice,

·         Breathing problems, and

·         Longer hospital stays.

v  Health care providers currently have no way of knowing which women will experience preterm labor or deliver their babies preterm.

v  More than 70 percent of premature babies are born between 34 and 36 weeks gestation.

v  The latest research suggests that many cases [of preterm labor] are triggered by the body’s natural response. In about half of all cases of premature birth, providers cannot determine why a woman delivered prematurely.

Are babies born at 34 to 36 weeks gestation (late preterm) at risk for medical problems?
Late preterm infants are usually healthier than babies born earlier. More than 99 percent of these babies survive, though they are (16):

·         6 times more likely than full-term infants to die in the first week of life (2.8 per 1,000 vs. 0.5 per 1,000)

·         3 times more likely to die in the first year of life (7.9 per 1,000 vs. 2.4 per 1,000)

Late preterm babies often weigh between 4½ and 6 pounds, and they may appear thinner than full-term babies. These babies remain at higher risk than full-term babies for newborn health problems, including breathing and feeding problems, difficulties regulating body temperature, and jaundice (17). These problems are usually mild. Most of these babies can breast- or bottle-feed, although some (especially those with mild breathing problems) may need tube-feeding for a brief time.

A baby's brain at 35 weeks weighs only two-thirds of what it will weigh at 40 weeks (17). Because their brain development is not complete, these babies may be at increased risk for learning and behavioral problems (17). Most do not develop serious disabilities resulting from premature birth.

A recent study, however, found that late preterm infants are more than 3 times as likely to develop cerebral palsy and are slightly more likely to have developmental delays than babies born full term (18). Another study found that adults who were born at 34 to 36 weeks gestation may be more likely than those born full-term to have mild disabilities and to earn lower long-term wages (19).

http://www.cdc.gov/features/prematurebirth/

http://www.marchofdimes.com/baby/premature_indepth.html