The data is equivalent to around 1 in 10 babies born early, before 37 weeks of pregnancy worldwide. Health experts blame poor maternal health and malnutrition for the high numbers.
“Since prematurity is the leading cause of death in children’s early years, there is an urgent need to strengthen both care for preterm babies as well as prevention efforts – particularly maternal health and nutrition – so as to improve childhood survival,” the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine said.
As with other major trends relating to maternal health, no region of the world has significantly reduced rates of preterm births over the last decade. The annual global rate of reduction in preterm births between 2010 and 2020 was just 0.14%.
“Preterm babies are especially vulnerable to life-threatening health complications, and they need special care and attention,” said Dr. Anshu Banerjee, Director of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing at WHO.
Around 65% of preterm births in 2020 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia, where over 13% of babies were born preterm. The rates in the worse affected countries – Bangladesh, Malawi and Pakistan – are three or four times higher than those in the least affected countries – Serbia, Moldova and Kazakhstan.
Preterm birth is not just an issue in low and middle-income countries. Data shows that it affects families in all parts of the world. Rates of 10% or higher occur in some high-income countries such as Greece and the United States of America.
“These numbers show an urgent need for serious investment in services available to support them and their families as well as a greater focus on prevention – in particular, ensuring access to quality health care before and during every pregnancy,” Dr. Banerjee said.
Maternal health risks, such as adolescent pregnancy, infections, poor nutrition, and pre-eclampsia, are closely linked to preterm births. Quality antenatal care is critical to detect and manage complications, to ensure accurate pregnancy dating through early ultrasound scans and if needed, to delay labor through approved treatments.
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