preemies

A large study published in late October found that weekly injections of Makena during the latter months of pregnancy "did not decrease recurrent preterm births."

Health & Safety

Controversy Kicks Up Over A Drug Meant To Prevent Premature Birth

6:35pm November 04, 2019

by Patti Neighmond

An expert panel wants the Food And Drug Administration to withdraw its approval for Makena, because a large study shows the drug doesn't work. But some doctors say the evidence isn't clear-cut.

While Baby Duke Brothers stayed in the NICU, his parents could watch over him via web cam.

Health & Safety

Cameras On Preemies Let In Families, Keep Germs Out

5:02am May 28, 2018

by Blake Farmer

Some hospitals are putting cameras in their neonatal intensive care units to reduce the number of people — and germs — from entering. But some NICU staff may not want to be watched around the clock.

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Salma Shabaik holds her newborn son, Ali. When he was born, she held him naked against her bare skin, a practice called kangaroo care. Ali is wearing an ear cap to correct a lop ear.

Kangaroo Care Helps Preemies And Full Term Babies, Too

7:56am January 23, 2017

by Patti Neighmond

Holding a newborn on a parent's bare chest has long been used to help premature babies. Hospitals increasingly recommend it for full term babies, too. Doctors say it reduces pain and lowers stress.

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Babies born prematurely are at risk of eye damage and, in severe cases, permanent blindness. Treatments can help. And human milk looks like it helps, too.

Mother's Milk May Help Prevent Blindness In Preemies

3:35pm November 16, 2015

by Tara Haelle

Babies born premature are at risk for eye damage that can cause blindness, like it did for Stevie Wonder. Babies who are fed breast milk are much less likely to be affected.

Researchers have used MRI scanners to learn that preemies are born with weak connections in some critical brain networks.

Weak Brain Connections May Link Premature Birth And Later Disorders

9:31pm October 19, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

Brain scans found abnormally weak connections in the brains of premature infants may make them more prone to develop autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other emotional disorders.

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Microbial diversity could be a factor in premature births.

Health & Safety

Microbe Mix May Play Role In Preterm Birth Risk

9:15am September 14, 2015

by Rob Stein

A small study found that women with diverse microorganisms in their birth canals were more likely to give birth before their babies reached full term than women with less microbial variety.

Preemies' Survival Rates Improve, But Many Challenges Remain

7:51am September 09, 2015

by Michaeleen Doucleff

Extremely premature babies, those born between 22 and 28 weeks of gestation, are more likely to survive now than they were 20 years ago. But the very youngest still have serious health problems.

Researcher John Clements in the early 1980s, after he figured out that lungs need surfactants to breathe.

How A Scientist's Slick Discovery Helped Save Preemies' Lives

9:05pm August 03, 2015

by Joe Palca

Sometimes one person's insight transforms medicine. Dr. John Clements is one of those people. In the 1950s he discovered a slippery lung substance key to breathing, and to the survival of tiny babies.

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Babies in the neonatal intensive care unit hospital don't always need the tests and treatments suggested.

5 Things Your Baby Should Avoid In The NICU

12:52pm July 21, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Babies in the neonatal intensive care unit often get multiple tests and treatments a day. Not all of them help, and some can hurt. Neonatologists have picked the five least likely to do good.

Waiting To Pick Your Baby's Name Raises The Risk For Medical Mistakes

5:32pm July 14, 2015

by Katherine Hobson

If parents don't have a name teed up, hospitals often give babies temporary ones, like Babygirl. But those generic names can be dangerously confusing, especially in the neonatal intensive care unit.