A Primer on Preemies (Premature Infants)
About Preemies Baby in Incubator Premature infants, known as preemies, come into the world earlier than full-term infants. Prematurity occurs when a pregnancy lasts less than 37 weeks; full-term infants are born 37 to 42 weeks after the mother's last menstrual period (LMP). Often, the cause of preterm delivery is unknown and not within the mother's control. However, sometimes it's caused by the mother's health conditions or lifestyle choices during pregnancy, such as having diabetes mellitus, hypertension, heart or kidney problems, an infection (particularly infections involving the amniotic membranes, and genital and urinary tracts), poor nutrition during pregnancy, or bleeding due to abnormal positioning of the placenta. Also, preterm delivery can happen due to structural abnormality or overstretching of the uterus by carrying more than one fetus (twins, triplets, or more) or using tobacco, alcohol, or illicit drugs during pregnancy. Preterm del...