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Considerable skill and team work is necessary in examining these very young
children, and we are grateful to the Educational Psychologist who gave valuable help, and
tested a total of 23 pre-school children during the year.
Premature Infants.
There were 202 premature infants (5½ lbs. or under) born during the year; of these,
196 were born in hospital, 4 born and nursed at home, and 2 born at home and transferred to
hospital.
Of those born In hospital 164 were still alive after 28 days; of the 32 babies who
did not survive, 20 died within the first 24 hours.
All 4 babies born and nursed at home survived 28 days. Of the 2 born at home, but
transferred to hospital, 1 died within 28 days.
The proportion of live premature births was 7.6% of total live births, (which Is
slightly higher than last year), and the proportion of all premature births was 8.5% of
total births. The figures for England and Wales were 7% and 8% respectively.
Out of a total of 51 deaths of infants under 1 year, 33 (65%) occurred in premature
infants who died within the first month of life. Of these 33 infants 19 weighed under 3 lbs.
and 12 were between 3 and 4 lbs.
It is thus obvious that as in the rest of the country, and indeed in many parts of
the world, prematurity remains one of the greatest causes of infant death and one of our
most urgent and difficult problems. Although some success has been achieved in keeping
premature babies alive and in helping them towards normal development, little has yet been
achieved in preventing premature births. Although we may hope for some success by more
careful attention to the early signs of pre-eclamptic toxaemia in pregnancy, we are greatly
handicapped by a lack of knowledge of some of the causes of prematurity.
To maintain an efficient follow-up and plan of care for premature Infants close
liaison Is needed with the maternity units in the area: it Is particularly important that
the local authority should receive early notification of the Impending discharge of premature
infants from hospital, and also as much Information as possible about the feeding and vitamin
intake which the baby has been receiving. This information is helpful in maintaining
continuity of advice on care and feeding, but much of its value is lost if days, or even
weeks, elapse before it is received.
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