I think that this article supports what Lactnetters were saying a few
weeks ago about the dangers of "social inductions" and other casual
terminations of pregnancy.

Pat Gima, IBCLC
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
____________________________________________________________________

Tuesday August 15 5:41 PM ET
Infants Born Just a Few Weeks Too Early at Greater Death Risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Babies who are born 4 to 8 weeks too early are
at greater risk of dying just after birth or anytime during the first year
of life than full-term infants, researchers report.

Such births can result in serious neurological, visual and breathing
problems, and most deaths are concentrated in the first few days after
delivery. However, the infants are also more likely to die in the first
year of life due to infections, sudden infant death syndrome or abuse,
according to Dr. Michael S. Kramer, of McGill University in Montreal,
Quebec, Canada, and associates.

Unlike most studies, which focus on very premature infants (those born
before the 32nd week of pregnancy), the investigators looked at mild (born
at 34 to 36 weeks) and moderate (born at 32 to 33 weeks) preterm births. A
full-term pregnancy is 40 weeks.

Mild preterm births make up nearly 5% of Canadian births and almost 8% of
US births, the authors report, while moderate preterm births range from
less than 1% in Canada to just over 1% in the United States.

In the US, mildly preterm infants were three times as likely to die as
full-term infants, the report indicates, and moderately preterm infants
were 6.6 times as likely to die as full-term babies.

In Canada, mildly preterm infants were 4.5 times more likely to die and
moderately preterm infants were 15 times more likely to die than full-term
infants, according to the report in the August 16th issue of The Journal of
the American Medical Association.

Because more infants are born mildly or moderately premature than very
premature, their combined impact on deaths exceeds that of the entire group
of infants born between 28 and 31 weeks of pregnancy and even that of all
infants born before the 28th week, the researchers observe.

Based on their findings, Kramer's team recommends that obstetricians take
these risks into consideration when determining whether or not to perform a
cesarean delivery or induce labor. Pediatricians should also closely
monitor these infants in the early days and after they leave the hospital.

``Inductions and cesarean sections at 32-36 weeks are not risk-free, and
the risks need to be considered when clinical decisions are made,'' Kramer
told Reuters Health.

``Also, infertility treatments are known to increase the risk of twin
gestations, and twins are often born at 32-36 weeks. Twins are 'cute' but
preterm twins are at increased risk of infant death,'' Kramer added.

SOURCE: The Journal of the American Medical Association 2000;284:843-849.


Mailto:[log in to unmask]

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html