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Caring for a preterm baby

Living

Last week, we celebrated World Prematurity Day, which aims at raising awareness for prematurity and the concerns of preterm babies and their families worldwide.

This is because infants born preterm represent the largest child patient group in the world.

 Approximately 15 million babies are born prematurely each year, accounting for more than one in ten per cent of all babies born worldwide. I have, therefore, decided to focus this week’s article on long-term problems that may be experienced by babies born prematurely.

While not all premature babies experience complications, being born too early can cause short-term and long-term health problems for preemies.

Generally, the earlier a baby is born, the higher the risk of complications. Most immediate complications are usually addressed at the hospital before the baby is discharged.

 In the long term, though, premature birth may result in various complications later in life, one of them being cerebral palsy. 

Another problem is impaired cognitive skills. Premature babies are more likely to lag behind their full-term counterparts on various developmental milestones. They are also likely to have learning disabilities.

Compared with babies born at full term, premature infants have an increased risk of developing neurological impairments when they are four to eight years old. Babies who are born earlier have poorer test scores in reading and math compared with those born full term.

Extremely premature babies perform worse on executive function tests and take longer to complete higher-order intellectual tasks. Premature babies, especially those born before 30 weeks, may develop retinopathy of prematurity, which can impair vision and cause blindness.

Premature babies are also at increased risk of some degree of hearing loss, dental problems, such as delayed tooth eruption, tooth discoloration and improperly aligned teeth. They may also suffer attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; depression or generalised anxiety; difficulties interacting with kids their age, an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in adulthood.

 

 

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