14 DAY TRIAL // Most of the 50 American states improved their preterm birth rates, and 8 of them even earned a better grade on the 2010 March of Dimes Premature Birth Report Card, according to the March of Dimes Foundation.
Today is the 8th Annual Prematurity Awareness Day, and the best day for the March of Dimes to release the report card for 2010.
This year, the United States received a 'D' on the report card, as national preterm birth rates were compared to the Healthy People 2010 goals.
Preterm birth rate is a very serious problem in the United States, and it is much higher than that of top scoring states and most industrialized countries.
2008 was the first time in the past 30 years that the preterm birth rate declined, with 4% less preterm births than in 2006 (from 12.8% it dropped to 12.3%).
According to the March of Dimes, 79% of the decline was among babies born only a few weeks before term.
This year, 17 states earned a 'C' on the report card, 20 got a 'D' and 13 states, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico failed.
Still, 28 states and Puerto Rico reduced the percentage of smoking women of childbearing age, 17 states and the District of Columbia had a decrease in the percentage of uninsured women of childbearing age and 37 states and Puerto Rico lowered the late preterm birth rate – infants born between 34 and 36 weeks of pregnancy.
US Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin, who today presented a new public service announcement about the preterm birth problem, said that “as a family doctor, I've seen the terrible impact of premature birth.
“It can cause life-long disabilities, and it is the leading cause of deaths in newborns.
“Our country has one of the highest rates of preterm birth in the world; we have to do better.”
Every year in the United States there are over half a million preterm-born babies, and birth before 37 weeks is a very serious problem, that also costs over 26$ billion annually, according to data from the Institute of Medicine.
Preterm births are the first cause of newborn death, and babies who survive an early birth have high risks of lifetime health problems, like cerebral palsy, breathing problems, intellectual disabilities, etc.
Even those who are born only a few weeks before term have higher rates of hospitalization and illness than full-term infants do, and that is because the last few weeks of pregnancy are critical for the development of many important organs, including the brain.
Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, president of the March of Dimes, said that “the policy changes and programs to prevent preterm birth that our volunteers and staff have worked so hard to bring about are starting to pay off.
“The two-year decline we have seen nationwide, though small, are encouraging.
“We believe this decline is the beginning of a trend, but must be supported by better health care, new research and adoption of intervention programs to lower the risk of preterm birth.”
There are some simple measures that can be taken in order to lower the risk of preterm births, like quitting smoking, preconception care, early prenatal care, progesterone treatments for women with preterm birth record, avoiding multiples from fertility treatments and avoiding unnecessary c-sections and inductions before 39 weeks of pregnancy.
