Premature Babies
Published May 9, 2026
A premature birth is when a baby is born before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy. Premature babies may have health problems and need special care.
<p>Almost 1 of every 10 infants born in the United States are premature, or preemies. A <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/pretermlabor.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">premature birth</a> is when a baby is born before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy. A full-term pregnancy is 40 weeks.</p> <p>Important growth and development happen throughout pregnancy - especially in the final months and weeks. Because they are born too early, preemies <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/birthweight.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">weigh much less</a> than full-term babies. They may have health problems because their organs did not have enough time to develop. Problems that a baby born too early may have include:</p><ul> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/breathingproblems.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Breathing problems</a></li> <li>Feeding difficulties</li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/cerebralpalsy.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Cerebral palsy</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/childdevelopment.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Developmental delay</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/visionimpairmentandblindness.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Vision problems</a></li> <li><a href="https://medlineplus.gov/hearingproblemsinchildren.html" target="blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Hearing problems</a></li> </ul> <p>Preemies need special medical care in a neonatal intensive care unit, or NICU. They stay there until their organ systems can work on their own. </p> <p>Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</p> <hr/> <p><em>Source: NIH MedlinePlus — <a href="https://medlineplus.gov/prematurebabies.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="blank">https://medlineplus.gov/prematurebabies.html</a></em></p>
Originally published at https://medlineplus.gov/prematurebabies.html