A new study shows that no region in the world has made significant strides in ensuring that fewer children are born before their due date.
The study, published in the scientific journal – the Lancet, shows that globally, the rate of reduction of premature babies was by 0.14 per cent.
This data comparison was done between 2010 and 2020 with the new estimate showing that in 2020, 13.4 million babies around the world were born preterm.
This number means that one in every 10 babies that were born in 2020, was a preemie. In 2010 on the other hand, about 13.8 million babies were born prematurely.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a preterm birth is one which occurs before the 37 full weeks that an expectant mother carries her pregnancy.
The WHO says that 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 labour through approved treatments,” they explained in a statement.
The Lancet analysis shows that between 2010 and 2020, about 15 per cent of the preterm births recorded globally were those that happened at less than 32 weeks of pregnancy, denoting that more children needed neonatal care.
In 2020, southern Asia and the Sub-Saharan Africa region had the highest number of preterm births, about 7 in 10 globally, compared to other regions in the global north.
In the sub-Saharan Africa region, Malawi topped the list with most of their babies born prematurely.
No country in southern Asia or sub-Saharan Africa was among the 33 countries in the world that were grouped in the highest data quality category.
“The high numbers of preterm births in these countries and areas are, in part, a reflection of their large population sizes, high numbers of total births, and weaker health systems that are unable to deliver high-quality family planning, antenatal care, and childbirth services to all individuals who need them,” said the researchers.
“Action is needed to address the underlying causes of preterm births, and to improve the use of real-time data for policies, programmes, and clinical management to develop effective prevention and treatment programmes,” they added.
The researchers observed that there exists data gaps as only 103 of the 195 countries and areas submitted data for preterm birth estimation, noting that this data is neither routinely collected nor reported in some countries.
“Investments are needed to improve country health information systems, including increased coverage of preterm data availability at national level and quality so that countries can monitor trends in preterm birth and coverage of recommended interventions for preterm birth, and by providing services for 13·4 million newborn babies born too soon,” advised the scientists.
Dr Anshu Banerjee, Director of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing at WHO said in a statement that preterm babies are vulnerable to life-threatening health complications and they need special care and attention.
“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,” he said.
