Premature Babies – How Survival Rates Can Increase

Increases in technology have led to an increase in the survival rate of premature babies. The term premature baby can refer to any baby born before 37 weeks gestation, however within this there are different levels of prematurity each carrying their own complications.

In the UK 54,000 premature babies are born every year; approximately 8% of babies born are preterm. The risk of having a premature baby increases for women who have had a previous premature birth; they are 2 ½ times more likely to have a premature baby than a pregnant woman who has not had a premature baby previously.

The risk of premature labour could also be decreased by stopping smoking, obtaining treatment for vaginal infections or discharges, keeping fit and healthy, avoiding excess stress and reporting symptoms such as swollen ankles, blood loss or fluid loss as early as possible as they may indicate complications with the pregnancy or maternal health problems.

Although 30% of premature births have no known cause, 15–20% is due to congenital abnormalities, trauma or medical problems resulting in the mother choosing to have the baby delivered early; another 20-25% is due to ante partum haemorrhage, congenital uterine abnormalities, genital tract infection, cervical incompetence and preterm rupture of membranes. Each of these problems could possibly be detected early by ultrasound scans.

Ultrasound baby scans including nuchal translucency scans (nuchal scans) and other baby scans can help with early detection of development problems with the uterus, amniotic sac or the foetus itself.

Research in 1995 showed that 50% of babies born at 22 weeks survived and those born at 24 weeks had an 81% survival rate. Many of them had permanent disabilities but roughly 1/5 of them had no problems whatsoever.

The survival rate of babies born before 28 weeks gestation is quite remarkable and the likelihood of this continuing to improve is quite high with the improvements in technology. A lot of premature babies spend lengthy periods of time in specialist baby units as low birth weight, poor lung and brain development along with other physical health problems make their start in life difficult.

The decrease in mortality rates means that researchers can now focus on reducing long-term morbidity problems such as brain damage. Close monitoring and the intense level of care premature babies receive in the specialist baby units along with new medicines and new technology mean that not only are these babies surviving, they are living longer lives as the incumbent complications are being managed better.

This became increasingly evident in 2006 when a new piece of research showed that the UK has the highest level of premature babies born in Europe. Although the reasons for this are unclear it is believed that stress and women working late into their pregnancies are the main cause. Of the 952 babies born before 26 weeks that were taken into the specialist baby unit 52% survived compared to 40% in 1995.

Although the rate of premature births has increased in the past 5 years after being stable for 15 years, the increase in research and the uptake of ultrasound scans are helpful in determining the reasons for this development and 4d ultrasound scans are helping families bond with their unborn premature baby.

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