Imagine having a baby, but not being able to hold it because it is too small, or too weak. Imagine not being able to feel the touch of a newborn child. Imagine seeing her hooked up to different cords and machines. A premature baby, or preemie, is any baby born before the 37th week of pregnancy. Premature birth occurs between 8 percent to 10 percent of all pregnancies in the United States. Because they are born too early, preemies weigh a lot less than full-term babies. Many preemies are born with health problems because their organs did not have enough time to develop. Preemies need special medical care in a neonatal intensive care unit, NICU, and they must stay there until their organ systems begin to work properly. Like full-term infants, preemies go through developmental milestones. However, because preemies are underdeveloped, they may encounter slightly different developmental milestones than full-term babies. Full-term babies usually develop at their own pace. It may be scary if they develop a little slower, but there is a very large frame of development in full-term infants. What’s important is that they are developing at all. Some may sit up quicker than others or even walk before others. Many full-term babies begin babbling before they begin walking, but there are some that do not begin talking until much …show more content…
Many have trouble swallowing food, which causes their weight to drop. Sometimes they have to use feeding tubes so that they are able to eat. Some premature infants cannot maintain a regular body temperature on their own, so they have to stay in incubators to keep them warm or cool enough that their temperatures won’t spike. Their organs may not function correctly, such as their lungs, which can cause breathing problems. Sometimes even after they are out of the NICU they continue to have problems. If the problem gets severe, the parents must immediately take their child to the