Every expectant parent dreams of having a bouncing, healthy baby, but the birth of a healthy baby cannot be taken for granted. Each day, thousands of babies are born with birth defects and developmental problems, often as a result of preterm birth. Preterm birth is a leading cause of vision and hearing impairment, delayed development, chronic lung disease, and cerebral palsy. Even among seemingly healthy preterm children, failure in school and family disruption are more common than among full-term infants.
Preterm babies are often underweight at birth.
A preterm baby born weighing less than 3.3 lbs. is nearly 200 times more likely to die during the first year of life than a baby born weighing 5.5 lbs. Low birth weight babies who survive are 10 times more likely to have neurological problems. Identifying Risk Factors While sometimes these problems are unavoidable, preterm birth and its complications can often be prevented through early and consistent prenatal care. When the risk of preterm birth is identified early in the pregnancy, the patient and her doctor can take steps to help extend the pregnancy as long as possible. The longer the pregnancy, the lower the chance of complications associated with preterm birth.