Premature babies have become more common over the past decade, meaning more children are facing life with a severe disability, a study has found.
More babies are being born before 26 weeks and more are surviving, thanks to improvements in intensive care, but the proportion suffering serious health and development problems as they grow up remains largely unchanged. Scientists said that the NHS must adapt to face this challenge.
Two linked studies published in the British Medical Journal looked at all babies born between 22 and 26 weeks’ gestation in England in 2006, comparing them with a 1995 study.
From March to December 1995, 666 babies in this age group were admitted to intensive care units, compared with 1,115 in 2006, a rise of 44