Growth, developmental milestones and health problems in the first 2 years in very preterm infants compared with term infants:: a population based study

The outcome of very preterm infants varies widely from centre to centre and from country to country. The aim of this study was to evaluate growth, developmental milestones and post-discharge morbidity of infants born before 32 weeks of gestation in Switzerland. A questionnaire was sent to the parents of 456 survivors born in 1996. A total of 309 (68%) parents responded and their infants were matched with 309 control infants born at term. At the corrected age of 24 months, the very preterm infants had significantly lower weight (-1.0 z-scores), lower length (-1.23 z-scores), and lower head circumference (-0.64 z-scores). Very preterm infants were reported to eat with a spoon later than those born at term (50% at 7.5 months corrected for prematurity versus 10 months, P<0.001), to drink later out of a cup (50% at 16.5 months versus 13.5 months, P=0.03) and to walk later independently (50% at 14.5 months versus 13.5 months, P=0.04), whereas timing of sitting unsupported was no different (50% at 7.4 months versus 7.2 months, P=0.9). Of very preterm infants, 16% were not able to walk at least three steps unsupported at 18 months after term which puts them at an increased risk for cerebral palsy. Some 35% of very preterm infants had to be readmitted to hospital during the first 24 months compared with 20% of control infants born at term (P<0.05). There was no difference between very preterm and term infants in respect to episodes of fever >38.5degreesC, episodes of coughing >3 days and treatment with antibiotics. Conclusion: these data based on a national survey allow to quantify growth retardation, developmental delay and post-discharge health problems within the first 2 years in preterm infants born before 32(0)/(7) weeks.