Premature Infant

A premature infant is a baby born before 37 weeks.
A premature infant has organs that are not fully grown. The infant needs special care in a nursery until the organ systems have developed enough to sustain life without medical support. This may take weeks to months.

A premature infant will have a low birth weight - less than 5.5 pounds (2500 grams). Common symptoms in a premature infant include:

* Respiratory problems such as hyaline membrane disease (also known as respiratory distress syndrome or RDS)
* Episodes of absent breathing (apnea)
* Poor feeding
* Thin, smooth, shiny, almost translucent skin
* Transparent skin (can see veins under skin)
* Wrinkled features
* Soft, flexible ear cartilage
* Body hair
* Weak cry
* Usually inactive -- however, may be unusually active immediately after birth
* Enlarged clitoris (female infant)
* Small scrotum, smooth without ridges (male infant)

The infant may have a low body temperature and show signs of breathing problems.

When premature labor develops and cannot be stopped medically, the health care team will prepare for a high-risk birth. The mother may be moved to a center that specifically cares for premature infants, for example, a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In some cases, medicines called steroids may be given to the mother in help the baby's lungs grow. When born, the baby is moved to a high-risk nursery. The infant is placed under a warmer or in an machine called an isolette, which controls the air temperature.

Since infants are usually unable to coordinate sucking and swallowing before 34 weeks gestation, your baby may have a feeding tube placed into the stomach. In very premature infants, feedings may be done through a vein (intravenously).

If the infant has breathing problems, a tube may be placed into the windpipe (trachea). A machine called a respirator will help the baby breathe. Oxygen is given.

Nursery care is needed until the infant reaches a body weight of about 5 pounds and is able to feed by mouth and maintain body temperature. In very small infants, other problems may complicate treatment and a longer hospital stay may be needed.

Prematurity was formerly a major cause of infant deaths. Improved medical and nursing techniques have increased the survival of premature infants. A greater chance of survival is associated with increasing length of the pregnancy. Of babies born at 28 weeks, approximately 80% survive.

Prematurity is not without long-term effects. A large number of premature infants have medical problems that continue into childhood or permanently. As a rule, the more premature an infant and the smaller the birth weight, the greater the risk of complications. It must be stressed, however, that it is impossible to predict the long-term outcome for an individual baby just on the basis of gestational age or birth weight.

Prevention

One of the most important steps to preventing prematurity is to receive prenatal care as early as possible in the pregnancy, and to continue such care until the baby is born. Statistics clearly show that early and good prenatal care reduces your chance of premature birth and related deaths.

Premature labor can sometimes be treated or delayed by a medication that blocks uterine contractions. Many times, however, attempts to delay premature labor are not successful.

How is the Being Premature monitored?

Babies who are born early usually are carefully monitored, especially for the first year. Very premature babies will be seen by eye and hearing specialists. They will be taken care of by development specialists and breathing specialists. Teams of healthcare providers work together to give these babies as much care as they need to help them develop as normally as possible. Any new or worsening symptoms should be reported to the healthcare provider.

What happens after treatment for Being Premature?

Once the baby is able to breathe on its own, he or she will usually spend some time in the nursery to grow more before going home. When the baby reaches a certain weight, the baby can go home and the parents can try to resume a normal life. But the baby may still need more care than a baby born on time. During the first year, the parents may spend more time in doctor visits with their baby than parents of full term babies.

What are the side effects of the treatments?

Ventilators may damage the baby's lungs. They also may cause chronic breathing problems. High levels of oxygen are sometimes needed to make sure the baby's organs get enough. This can have the side effect of damaging the blood vessels in the eyes. This in turn can cause poor vision. Certain antibiotics can cause trouble with hearing as the baby grows. Very premature babies often need to be fed through the bloodstream instead of through their guts. These babies can develop liver injury as a result.

What are the treatments for Being premature?

Treatment depends on how early a baby is born and its weight at birth. Babies who are born only a few weeks early usually just need time to grow, and time to learn to feed well. They often go home after a short time in the hospital. Usually, the earlier a baby is born, the longer it will stay in the hospital, and the more treatment it will need. The very premature babies are least likely to survive even with the best of care, and those who do survive often have to stay in a specialized hospital for several months.

What are the risks to other babies?

Being premature is, in and of itself, obviously not contagious and poses no risk to other babies. Some infectious conditions in the mother that may have resulted in a premature delivery, could be contagious.

What are the long-term effects of the premature infant?

Sometimes premature babies grow to be completely normal children. Over 90% of infants weighing more than 1,500 grams, or about 3 pounds, survive. The rate decreases to 40% for infants weighing less than 750 grams, or about 1.5 pounds. Of the babies who survive, severe developmental problems occur in 5% to 10% and mild developmental problems in another 10 to 25%. The smaller a baby is at birth, the more likely the baby is to have serious difficulties. Whether the baby's initial hurdles turn into long term issues depends in large part on what happens in the first few months after birth.

* If a baby needs to be on a ventilator for a long time, lifelong breathing problems can result. Being chronically ill makes it hard for these infants to grow normally.
* If a baby needs high levels of oxygen, the eyes can be affected. Some of these babies become blind.
* If a baby is on certain types of antibiotics, trouble with hearing can develop.

Premature birth or LBW also carries a higher risk of cerebral palsy and mental retardation. These babies can develop seizures as well. VLBW infants may have problems with learning and school performance.

How is the premature infant diagnosed?

Usually a woman knows how many weeks she has been pregnant. The healthcare provider measures the size of pregnant woman's womb to help confirm the dates, but if there is any doubt, the best information is obtained from a pregnancy ultrasound . This test uses high frequency sound waves - much safer than X-ray for the unborn infant - to measure the size of the baby's head and look for other indicators of development. After the baby is born, the healthcare provider can estimate the baby's age by doing a physical exam.

What can be done to prevent the Premature Infant?

Mothers may be able to lessen the chances of premature birth by avoiding some of the pregnancy risk factors. For example, prenatal care may help prevent a mother from having a premature baby. It is important to avoid drugs, alcohol, and smoking during pregnancy. But sometimes there is no way to prevent a baby from being born early.

What are the causes and risks of thepremature infant?

Mothers with certain risk factors are statistically more likely to give birth to a low-birth-weight infant. These factors include the following:

* abusing drugs or being addicted to drugs
* being single
* being very thin, or less than 100 pounds, before pregnancy
* being younger than 16 years of age or older than 35 years of age
* dealing with high levels of stress
* having already given birth to a low-birth-weight infant
* having African American ancestry
* having had few years of schooling
* having poor weight gain, or less than a 10-pound gain, during pregnancy
* living in poverty
* receiving no prenatal care
* smoking cigarettes
* using alcohol
* waiting only a short time between pregnancies

Some babies have factors themselves that make them more likely to be born early. These factors include being one of multiple babies in the same womb, such as twins or triplets. The baby may have physical problems or a bloodstream damaged by infection.

Sometimes there are problems with a mother's womb. The placenta may not be adequate to support the baby to full term. The placenta may be in an unusual location, such as near to or obstructing the outlet to the womb (placenta previa). When the mother has a chronic illness like diabetes, congestive heart failure, or high blood pressure, she is more likely to deliver early. Certain infections in the mother, such as genital herpes or syphilis, can also trigger a premature birth.

What are the signs and symptoms of the premature condition?

The baby's weight at birth can help predict how well the baby will do. Babies whose birth weight is less than 2,500 grams, or about 5.5 pounds, are called low-birth-weight (LBW) infants. LBW babies make up only 7% of births. However, they account for two-thirds of newborn deaths. Babies whose birth weight is less than 1,500 grams, or about 3.25 pounds, are called very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants. These babies make up about 1% of births. They account for half of newborn deaths.

One of the many problems associated with being born too early is respiratory distress syndrome. This occurs when the baby's lungs are too underdeveloped to work properly. A baby with immature lungs may have trouble breathing and need a ventilator. Some babies cannot get enough oxygen, even with a ventilator. The ventilator can sometimes cause damage to the lungs. Babies born prematurely can go on to experience lifelong difficulties with breathing.

These babies also have underdeveloped immune systems, leaving them more vulnerable than full term newborns to severe and deadly infections, such as group B streptococcal septicemia. Extremely premature babies usually need to be given antibiotics often and for long periods of time. Some of the antibiotics have long-term side effects.

When babies are born very early, they can have bleeding in their brains, resulting in damage ranging from mild to severe. In addition, many extremely premature babies do not develop physically or mentally at a normal pace as they grow up. It is hard to predict which babies will have developmental delays. Other conditions affecting premature babies occur in the gut, the kidneys, or the liver. Some suffer from irregular levels of sugars and salts in their bloodstream. They often develop anemia, sometimes severe enough to require blood transfusions.

Sometimes the treatments that they receive for their underdeveloped organs can lead to complications of their own. An example of this is the damage to

Sometimes the treatments that they receive for their underdeveloped organs can lead to complications of their own. An example of this is the damage to the retinas of a premature baby's eyes, that can be caused by excess oxygen.

Definition of Premature Infant

A premature infant is a baby who has spent less than 37 weeks in the womb. The average length of pregnancy is 40 weeks. Thus, a premature infant is one who is born 3 weeks or more before the due date.