BMJ  2006;332:924-925 (22 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7547.924

Editorial

Why should preterm births be rising?

If a rise is confirmed, the implications are considerable

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Preterm birth is a major contributor to neonatal and infant mortality. Few interventions have improved outcome, and management remains an important challenge in modern obstetrics. A paper in this week's BMJ indicates that preterm delivery rates are increasing, which is a worrying prospect.¹

Preterm deliveries account for fewer than 1 in 10 births but result in 75% of neonatal deaths and most neonatal intensive care admissions.² Preterm birth has considerable impact on long term future health: 1 in 4 survivors born at less than 25 weeks' gestation have severe mental or physical disability.³ Those born at less than 28 weeks spend 85 times as long in hospital as term babies in the first five years of life, with substantial healthcare costs.⁴ Even beyond 32 weeks, when "neurologically intact" survival is good, educational and behavioural problems occur in 1 in 3 children at the age of 7. This type of . . . [Full text of this article]

King's College London School of Medicine, St Thomas' Hospital, London SE1 7EH
(andrew.shennan@kcl.ac.uk)

King's College London School of Medicine, St Thomas' Hospital, London SE1 7EH

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• Cornish, J, Tan, E, Teare, J, Teoh, T G, Rai, R, Clark, S K, Tekkis, P P (2007). A meta-analysis on the influence of inflammatory bowel disease on pregnancy. Gut 56: 830-837 [Abstract] [Full text]  
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