National Issues
Prematurity Awareness
As we highlight November 17th, International Prematurity Awareness Day, help support premature infants around the globe by speaking up about the many challenges faced by these fragile patients and their families.
Together, we can be a "voice for the voiceless." Explore this site to see local and national issues, resources and tools, and how you can become an engaged participant on the local level in 13 state preemie networks.
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March Of Dimes announces the 2008 preliminary preterm birth rate fell by 3% representing the second year in a row that the rate has declined after more than three decades of relentless increases. - 4/2010
The nation’s preterm birth rate dropped for the second consecutive year.
New nationwide statistics show a 3 percent decline in the preterm birth rate, according to a report released today by the National Center for Health Statistics.
March of Dimes officials say they are encouraged and hope that the decline is a new trend in infant health. The data are based on 99.9 percent of U.S. births and the improvement must be confirmed in the final data.
“We’re beginning to see the benefits of years of hard work by the March of Dimes and its partners. This decline, although small, is heartening,” said Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes. “It means about 14,000 babies were spared the health risks of an early birth. We hope that this is just the beginning of what’s possible, and that efforts such as health care reform and our programs to make women and their doctors aware of things they can do to lower the risk of a preterm birth will continue to bear fruit in years to come.”
The preterm birth rate dropped to 12.3 percent, according to the report, “Births: Preliminary Data for 2008,” which was released today by the National Center for Heath Statistics. That’s down from the 2007 preliminary rate of 12.7 percent. The declines follow a more than 20 percent increase in the preterm birth rate between 1990 and 2006.
Premature birth is a serious and costly problem, the March of Dimes says. Even with the decline in the preterm birth rate, more than a half million babies are born too soon in the United States each year, costing the nation more than $26 billion annually. Babies who survive an early birth often face lifelong health challenges, including cerebral palsy, blindness, hearing loss, learning disabilities, and other chronic conditions. Even infants born “late preterm” – between 34 and 36 weeks gestation – have a greater risk of re-hospitalization, breathing problems, feeding difficulties, temperature instability (hypothermia), jaundice, delayed brain development and learning problems.
The March of Dimes says 79 percent of the decline in the preterm birth rate occurred among late preterm babies.
There are known strategies that can lower the risk of an early birth -- such as smoking cessation programs, progesterone treatments for women with a history of preterm birth, avoiding multiples from fertility treatments and avoiding unnecessary c-sections and inductions before 39 weeks.
The March of Dimes is the leading nonprofit organization for pregnancy and baby health. With chapters nationwide and its premier event, March for Babies®, the March of Dimes works to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. The March for Babies is sponsored nationally by the March of Dimes number one corporate supporter Kmart, Farmers Insurance Group, CIGNA, Continental Airlines, Famous Footwear, FedEx, sanofi pasteur, First Response, and Mission Pharmacal. To join an event near you, visit marchforbabies.org. For more information, go to the March of Dimes Web site at marchofdimes.com or its Spanish language Web site at nacersano.org.
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PREEMIE Act - 12/2006
US House of Representatives passed the Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early Act (PREEMIE Act) by unanimous consent on December 9, 2006. President Bush signed the bill into law on December 22, 2006.
The PREEMIE Act provides a foundation for expanding research on prematurity, and Federal support for public health and professional education, as well as health services related to prematurity. The bill allows for the coordination of Center for Disease Control (CDD) activities regarding studies that aim to demonstrate the relationship between prematurity and low birth weight.
The bill also establishes an Interagency Coordinating Council on Prematurity and Low Birth Weight. In Summer 2008, the US Surgeon General held a conference in order to develop a national agenda for preventing premature births, as required by the bill.
Click here to read the full PREEMIE Act on the March of Dimes website.
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Public Health Leaders Urge Congress to Reauthorize PREEMIE Act - 5/2010
In May, public health leaders from CDC, NIH, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG), March of Dimes Foundation and others addressed America's prematurity crisis before a Congressional subcommittee on health, calling for Congress to reauthorize the PREEMIE Act (P.L. 109-450). The PREEMIE Act, signed into law in December 2006, authorizes expanded federal research related to preterm labor and care for preterm infants; public and provider education and support services; the establishment of an interagency council on prematurity to report to the HHS secretary; and the establishment of the Surgeon General's Conference on Preterm Birth, which led to the creation of prematurity-related agendas for both public and private sectors.
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PREEMIE Act In US Senate - 9/2010
This past week, legislation was introduced by US Senators Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT) to reauthorize the PREEMIE Act (Public Law 109-450). The reauthorization would continue and enhance federal support for research into the causes and prevention of premature birth and to reduce infant mortality caused by prematurity. The legislation was originally enacted in 2006 and brought attention and resources to research addressing the issue of premature birth. The reauthorization of the bill will ensure continued federal support for scientists and doctors who are studying the causes of premature birth and how they can be prevented. PREEMIE is an abbreviation for the Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who Delivery Infants Early Act. For more information go to http://www.marchofdimes.com/aboutus/49267_66872.asp.
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US Gets a “D” for Preterm Birth Rate - 11/2009
The March of Dimes recently gave the United States a “D” on the March of Dimes Premature Birth Report Card. Read the full press release or download a white paper about Preterm birth from the March of Dimes.
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Recent Trends in Late Preterm Births - 11/2009
The preterm (less than 37 weeks of gestation) birth rate rose by more than 20 percent in the United States between 1990 and 2006. Most of this increase was among infants born toward the end of the preterm period, at 34 to 36 full weeks of pregnancy, or during the period known as “late preterm.” Read the entire data brief from the National Center for Health Statistics.
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Institute of Medicine (IOM) Report Brief on Preterm Birth: Causes, Consequences, and Prevention - 7/2006
The rate of preterm births in the United States is a growing public health problem that has significant consequences for families, and costs society at least $26 billion a year. Download full report.
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Prematurity and Smoking - 2/2010
Parents, beware. You probably know that smoking is dangerous for your own health. But did you know that smoking near your infant or young child exposes them to chemicals from cigarette smoke, and that children are especially vulnerable to health problems from these secondhand smoke poisons?
First, the basics: The U.S. Surgeon General has concluded there is no safe level of exposure to cigarette smoke. It causes not only acute respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia but also sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), ear problems and asthma attacks for children.
Babies exposed to secondhand smoke also have weaker lungs than other babies, and infants and young children are overall especially vulnerable to poisons in it. Children still are developing physically, breathe at a higher rate than adults and cannot control their indoor environments to the extent that adults can. The Surgeon General declared that “the home is now becoming the predominant location for exposure of children and adults to secondhand smoke.”
One dramatic example of children’s vulnerability: An infection of the lungs called Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is so common that it hits almost all children by their second birthday. For many, the symptoms are like those of a mild cold. But about 75,000 to 125,000 children under a year old get very sick and are hospitalized with RSV each year. Some develop pneumonia and need to be put on a ventilator. Scientists say two important risk factors for developing more serious respiratory infections such as RSV are younger age and living with mothers who smoke.
It is not unusual for premature infants to have lungs that are underdeveloped. They may find it harder to fight off an RSV infection once they catch it. Parents cannot change the circumstances if a baby is born prematurely; but for both premature babies and full-term infants, parents can do more to protect their children from secondhand smoke.
What precautions can parents take? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency urges parents to make their homes and cars smoke-free, and not to allow childcare providers or others who work in the home to smoke. An EPA brochure, available in English and Spanish, warns of the health threat to families from secondhand smoke. The American Academy of Pediatrics similarly tells parents never to smoke in the presence of their children and even recommends parents hire only non-smoking baby sitters and care providers.
The American Lung Association implores parents to protect their infants and children from tobacco smoke. We encourage parents to make all homes smoke-free, and especially those homes with infants. Parents should also ensure that their infants are not exposed to tobacco smoke in public places.
Do such precautions seem extreme? Not when cigarette smoke can exacerbate the severity of a commonplace infection like RSV-- and not when the toxins from cigarettes can damage the vulnerable lungs of your fragile infant. In these circumstances, it simply makes common sense to protect infants and older children from the poisons of secondhand smoke.
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