Prematurity

Description

These are births occurring before the thirty-seventh week of pregnancy, result in infants who are small and immature—weighing less than 2.5 kgs—and who are at greater risk of death than those born at full term. Indeed the statistics show the struggle that these children face. Disorders relating to short gestation and low birth weight are among 10 leading causes of infant mortality (Hoyert et al., 2001). Earlier estimates suggest that approximately 75 percent of all infant deaths in the first month of life occur in premature infants (McCormick, 1985). Premature babies often spend months fighting for survival and struggling to overcome illness, and the impact on families is often long-lasting both emotionally and financially. In economic terms, estimates suggest that in the first year of life alone, a preterm birth costs on average about $59,730 (Rogowski, 1998). Furthermore, approximately 35 percent of all expenditures for newborns and approximately 10 percent of all medical expenditures for children are associated with preterm birth (Lewit et al., 1995). Emotionally, the impact on families is harder to quantify but is reputed to be substantial.

Objectives

Presenters

1. Dr. Cecilia Kiriongi
   Paediatrician
   Defence Forces Memorial Hospital