New Study Looks at Preemies and Death Rate

Premature babies often have it rough in their early years, but that might not be the end to their trials. A new study shows that people who were preemies are more likely to die in their young adult years than those who were carried full-term.

Preemies are often born with health issues and conditions that can make their early life challenging. It’s no surprise then, that the death rate in the first few years is higher for preemies; but what is surprising is that that rate resurfaced between the years of 18 to 36.

The study was conducted on 675,000 Swedes born between 1973 and 1979, and included babies born before 37 weeks of pregnancy as well as those carried to term. It found that the preemies had a higher death rate before the age of 5, then levelled out in late childhood and the adolescent years, and then once again climbed between ages 18 and 36.

Specifically, it was found that young adults who were born at 22 to 27 weeks had a death rate of 0.94 for every 1,000, while those born between 37 and 42 weeks had a 0.46 rate for every 1,000.

Some of the health issues that were associated with the early death include diabetes, asthma and heart disease.

While this may sound alarming, study leader Casey Crump out of Stanford University said there’s no cause for panic. “The absolute mortality was still less than one per 1,000 people per year, so it's very low,” he explained.

He also noted that even though the rate of babies born preterm is between 12 and 13 percent, the rate of survival is going up. His general advice:

“I think it's important to be aware of the potential for an increased risk of various health problems through the life course. It will be important for survivors of preterm birth to get regular health checkups and screening, and to avoid smoking and obesity to offset those risks.”