How early can a baby be born?

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There isn't a hard and fast rule as to how early premature babies can survive and with advances in science and medical care, the odds continually improve. A baby is defined as being premature if he or she arrives before 37 weeks of pregnancy. 'Preemies' may experience health problems depending their point of birth, as they will not have had as much time to develop in the womb as full term babies. Every day that a growing baby spends in its mother's womb will help it to mature and develop and is likely to improve its development and health in later life. In fact between weeks 23 and 26, each extra day within the womb will increase baby's survival chances by between 2 and 4%.

Around nine out of ten babies born at 28 weeks will survive, but many will also have health problems - often serious. Those babies born before 23 weeks will have far smaller likelihood of survival, having had simply too little time to develop and survive - however every year there are startling cases of success and medical progress continues.

For parents with a premature baby, the pressures can be great - they are likely to experience despair, stress and fear, mixed with hope and optimism after their baby's birth. The UK does in fact have the highest rate of babies born with low birth weights in West Europe and around 10% of all babies born in the UK will need some form of special care after birth.

Why are some babies premature?

Half of premature births will have no obvious cause, however for the remaining 50 % there are a range of noted causes. For example, mothers under 18 years or over 35 years have a higher risk of delivering their baby early. For young mums there are associated risks of poor diet and smoking which will cause additional risks and for older mothers there are risks of carrying more than one baby if she's had IVF or fertility treatment. Other conditions will also have an impact - for example cervical incompetence which indicates that the cervix is not strong enough to withstand the pressure of a full term pregnancy and will give rise to early labour.

Medical care

There is a vast array of specialist medical care now designed for premature babies, allowing even those born at 24 or 25 weeks to have a chance of survival. Breathing problems are common for preemies as their lungs are still underdeveloped at birth. If a doctor thinks that a baby will not go full term, she may administer a corticosteroid medication so that the lung development will hasten and prevent incidences of bleeding into baby's brain once born.

After delivery, premature babies are usually taken directly to a special care unit. This can be difficult and distressing for new mums to be separated from their baby so soon, but the special care provided in the unit is absolutely necessary. Once in the unit, baby's heart rate, blood pressure, temperature and breathing will be monitored constantly and care will be provided by an expert team with a specialist neonatologist leading. A ventilator may be used to help with breathing and IV lines may be inserted to help baby receive food and medication. A catheter is commonly used into the umbilical cord to obtain blood and pass necessary fluids. The wires and tubes can be an upsetting sight for the parents, but the specialist team are on hand to reassure them and explain their purposes.

Complications

Depending on baby's birth age, certain problems are likely, particularly breathing problems such as apnea when breathing stops. Respiratory distress can also occur when air sacs within the lungs struggle to stay open because they are not yet fully developed. Baby's blood pressure may be too high or low and his or her heart rate too low as well. Other problems may include problems with feeding and jaundice. Bleeding into the brain and infections are possible too. Baby will be very small and weight less than 5 pounds 8 ounces. The skin may be very thin and appear shiny and nearly translucent as he or she will only have very tiny reserves of body fat which are important for keeping warm. For this reason baby may have fine and downy body hair to help them retain heat.

Treatment

Regardless of baby's condition and appearance, there a great deal of targeted treatment to match the birth age, overall health and medical history. When parents are frightened or confused, trained staff and counsellors are on hand and 'kangaroo' care is now very popular - where parents are encouraged to stay with the baby and allow them to hear their voices and have skin to skin contact.

When a baby reaches their original birth date, they will usually be allowed home, as long as they have learned to eat and sleep, are gaining weight and have no other ongoing serious medical problems. Parents will be taught how to care for them and will probably need to keep to regular monitoring appointments with the hospital as baby continues to grow and develop.

How early can a baby be born?

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Why are some babies premature?

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