Great news for extremely premature babies and their parents

Sadly, these sweet babies are often in a precarious situation. Their survival rates can be as low as 10% if they are born at 22 weeks, and the rates increase a little more with each week. 

Recent advancements bring wonderful news for preterm babies and their families. The past few years have brought an increase in survival rates for preemies:

It’s so encouraging to see the progress being made in fighting for the lives of vulnerable babies. This progress highlights acutely the humanity and inherent value of tiny babies’ lives.

The “age of viability” of unborn babies is often a point of contention in debates over abortion. In an article in The Atlantic, Colleen Malloy, a neonatologist and faculty member at Northwestern University, said,

So this increase in preemie survival rates is a really hopeful advancement. It shows ever more clearly the humanity of unborn babies. Better health and survival rates for the tiniest humans is something we can all cheer for. 

At the same time, it’s important to note that race can play a role in outcomes, as it does in maternal health overall in America:

Hopefully awareness of this horrifying disparity can be a call to action that spurs the fight to save the lives of all mothers and babies.