Prematurity Awareness Month

A baby born before 37 weeks is considered premature or a preemie. A full term baby is born anywhere between 38 to 42 weeks. My daughter was born at 36 weeks and never did I think she was a preemie. She weighed 6 pounds, 1.5 ounces at birth.

November is Prematurity Awareness month and in the US, 1 in 8 births are premature. Here are some causes that increases a woman's chance of delivering a premature baby:

- Delivering a previous premature baby
- Pre-eclampsia
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Multiple gestations - twins, triplets or more
- Poor nutrition - poor weight gain
- Drug abuse - smoking, drinking etc.
- Physical stress
- Under the age of 19 or over the age of 35

None of these risk factors applied to me so there was an unknown reason.

Babies born between 25-29 weeks have a good survival rate, but they require intensive care.

Some common problems of preemies include apnea, low blood pressure, anemia, breathing and lung problems. Although jaundice also sometimes appear in full-term babies, it is more common in premature babies. Jaundice occurs when there is high levels of bilirubin. If there's an extremely high level of bilirubin present and if it's left untreated, it can cause brain damage, hearing loss, physical abnormalities and eye muscle problems. Jaundice babies are placed under special lights that help lower their bilirubin levels.

Most premature babies don't develop serious disabilities, but the earlier they are born the higher the risk of having celebral palsy and mental retardation.

For more information, visit March of Dimes - Prematurity