Library · Disease
Preterm birth
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A preterm birth is when a baby is born alive before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy. For comparison, a full-term pregnancy, meaning a complete one, lasts 40 weeks.
Important growth and development happen throughout pregnancy, and especially in the final months and weeks. If a baby is born early, they weigh much less than a full-term baby and can have problems because their organs haven't had enough time to develop. It's like bread taken out of the oven before it's fully baked.
How much risk there is depends mainly on gestational age, that is, how many weeks into the pregnancy the baby was at birth. Possible complications include trouble breathing, hypothermia, which is a body temperature that is too low, and hypoglycemia, which is low blood sugar.
In brief
Preterm birth occurs when a baby is born alive before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy; a full-term pregnancy lasts 40 weeks.
Important growth and development happen throughout pregnancy, especially at the end; preterm babies weigh much less and can have problems because their organs haven't had enough time to develop.
Bread taken out of the oven before it's fully baked.
The risk depends mainly on gestational age at birth; possible complications include breathing difficulties, hypothermia, and hypoglycemia.
Sources (3)
- World Health OrganizationPreterm birth, WHO fact sheetPublished
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of MedicinePremature Babies, MedlinePlus Health TopicsPublished
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingPreterm Labor, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated