Premature Birth Weight Baby Essay

Premature Birth and Low Birth Weight

For families that dealing with taking care of premature birth and low birth weight baby are very challenging situation. Parents should be given more education and information regarding the care of the baby and some expectation along this journey. A premature birth occur when the baby is born more than 3 weeks before its due date (Mayo Clinic, 2014). A baby who is born weighing less than 5lbs., 8 ounces, he or she is considered to have a low birth weight (Kulich, 2015).

Some concerns of parents or families are the health and development of a preterm and low birth weight baby. In the first week of preterm baby, some short term complications involved problems in breathing due to immature respiratory system

That’s why additional heat is needed such as warmer or incubator to maintain body temperature without assistance. Some of the long term complications that a preterm birth can lead to is impaired cognitive skills. Premature babies are more likely to lag behind their full term counter parts on various developmental mile stones. Cerebral palsy is one of the long term complications of premature birth due to injury to a pre term baby’s developing brain. Premature infants may develop retinopathy of prematurity, a disease that occurs when blood vessels swell and overgrow in the light sensitive layer of nerves at the back of the eye. There are some diagnostics and testing that are possibly needs to be done. These includes breathing and heart monitor which is done frequently. The NICU team monitors the fluid

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2. Kulich, E. (2015). Low Birth Weight. Retrieved from http://www.pregnancycorner.com/giving-birth/complications/low-birth-weight.html

3. Mayo Clinic. (2014). Premature Birth. Retrieved from