More than a half of thepreterm babies those born alive before 37 weeks ofpregnancy requireneonatal intensive care unit(NICU) admission. In contrast, only 7% of term babies neededNICUadmission. In preterm babies, there were also concerns aboutGrowth retardationandabnormalities, shows a study fromKerala.
Kerala has shown a downward trend of neonatal mortality in 6 per 1,000 live births, infant mortality in 7 per 1,000 live births and maternal mortality rates in 43 per 1,00,000 live births. The decline of infant mortality rates has shifted the focus now to perinatal mortality rates which is a good indicator of the quality of care for both mother and child.
This resulted in not only lower birth weight Average birth weight of 2kg in preterm babies compared to 3.1kg among term babies but fetal outcomes were also poor with 2% deaths compared to none in the control group. About 5% of preterm babies had intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), 7% had a cardiac abnormality, 3% had renal abnormalities and 3% had respiratory distress.