Premies go on to have greater health risks later in life

[ravenscape]

http://www.mercurynews.com/localnewsheadlines/ci_8700548



Infants born prematurely are much more likely to die during childhood and, if they survive, they're much less likely to have children of their own in adulthood, according to the largest study of prematurity undertaken.
Researchers already knew that premature infants faced many neurological and developmental problems, but the new findings, released today, indicate that the spectrum of problems is even broader than suspected and persist throughout the child's lifetime. The study, conducted using Norwegian data, suggests that, as the percentage of premature infants who make it through their first year continues to grow because of advances in neonatology, the number of troubled infants and adults also will rise.


The article goes on to say that 1 in 8 births in the US are premature. I imagine this number is high in large part due to the multiple births associated with fertility treatments.

My biggest question in reading the article was how to separate infertility due to premature birth from infertility due to offspring sharing the DNA of parents who required fertility treatments in order to conceive and give birth.

[Febble]

http://www.mercurynews.com/localnewsheadlines/ci_8700548



The article goes on to say that 1 in 8 births in the US are premature. I imagine this number is high in large part due to the multiple births associated with fertility treatments.

My biggest question in reading the article was how to separate infertility due to premature birth from infertility due to offspring sharing the DNA of parents who required fertility treatments in order to conceive and give birth.

I'm not sure how big the impact of fertility treatments is, but the number is certainly increasing as resuscitation techniques improve. I'm not at all sure that it's right to resuscitate infants of 22 weeks gestation, although I'd no doubt feel differently if it was my own child.

Although it's still a minority who go on to have serious health complications, it's also a minority who have no problems at all, if I recall I lecture I went to about a year ago correctly.

We didn't evolve to survive birth at 22 weeks gestation.

[Flying Buttress]

Infertility due to premature birth?

Yes, premies are vulnerable to all kinds of CNS insults, as well as lung disorders, blindness, heart problems, etc.

[Droopy]

The article goes on to say that 1 in 8 births in the US are premature. I imagine this number is high in large part due to the multiple births associated with fertility treatments.

Or because most c-sections are performed at around 37 weeks to avoid the chance of the mother going into natural spontaneous labour beforehand. I also know of a number of women who were induced at 37 weeks because their babies were allegedly getting to big to birth naturally.

[David B]

And there was me thinking that the word 'Premies' referred to followers of the Divine Light Mission.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Light_Mission

David B (was once persuaded by an old friend, back in the early seventies, to spend a few hours at one of their ashrams)

[Quizalufagus]

I suspect that as our technology improves, premies will face fewer complications. As in so many other cases, our technology is gradually supplanting our evolutionary context.

[Febble]

I suspect that as our technology improves, premies will face fewer complications. As in so many other cases, our technology is gradually supplanting our evolutionary context.

Well, that begs a question or two! Our technology is simply part of the fitness landscape.

[Quizalufagus]

Not really--at least not if "fitness landscape" refers to the heritable traits on which selection acts. Most of our technological achievements (all of them?) aren't heritable at all.

[David B]

Well, that begs a question or two! Our technology is simply part of the fitness landscape.

Yup - like the Easter Islanders statue building was part of theirs.

A bit like, anyway, though there are differences.

Our technology has more useful about it than the Easter Islands statue building.

But among the similarities is exponential use of finite resources.

David B (is not sanguine about the future)

[Daisy]

Or because most c-sections are performed at around 37 weeks to avoid the chance of the mother going into natural spontaneous labour beforehand. I also know of a number of women who were induced at 37 weeks because their babies were allegedly getting to big to birth naturally.Does 37 weeks really count as premature?

[Droopy]

According to the article, they define anything after 38 weeks as full term. Everything before is premature, though obviously not life-threateningly so.

[dancer_rnb]

9X4=36.

So human gestation is now 9 1/2 months?

[ravenscape]

It's 280 days, or 40 weeks (on average).

[Droopy]

9 calendar months.

A normal gestation is between 40 and 42 weeks, though there will likely be some sort of intervention after 41 weeks if spontaneous labour doesn't begin.