Premature babies

The normal term for a baby is 37 weeks. Those babies that are born before this period are premature babies.

Modern medical technology has advanced to such an extent that today babies that are born at 23 or 24 weeks can be kept alive and monitored till they reach full term. Babies born at 25 weeks and after have a perfectly good chance of healthy survival today.

Special Care Baby Units (SCBU) are designed and equipped to look after sick and early babies. Premature babies have Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS) or difficulty in breathing.

As the baby is born too early its lungs haven’t developed enough to produce surfactant, an important substance that prevents the inner side of the lungs from fusing together.

Today the babies are given artificial surfactant. They need special care and are kept in an incubator in a controlled environment and fed through tubes to their stomach.