Incidence of severe disability among very premature babies has not changed for a decade

More babies born between 22 and 25 weeks of gestation in England survived in 2006 than in 1995, research shows.

However, survival has improved only among those babies born at 24 and 25 weeks. Babies born at 23 weeks’ gestation were no more likely to survive in 2006 than they were in 1995, despite advances in care. The current legal limit for abortion is 24 weeks.

The research also found that about a fifth of babies (19%) born between 22 and 25 weeks’ gestation in 2006 had a severe disability, a figure that has remained unchanged since 1995.

The findings are …