Premature Births in U.S. Set Record High in 2003
More than 12% of U.S. babies were born prematurely in 2003, a record high, as women delayed motherhood and doctors took steps such as inducing labor in some older women, the National Center for Health Statistics said.
The teenage birthrate, meanwhile, continued to decline to 41.6 births per 1,000 females 15 to 19 years old, a decline of 3%.
About 499,000 infants in 2003 were born after fewer than 37 weeks’ gestation. Experts are concerned, said Jennifer Howse, president of the March of Dimes, because “prematurity is the No. 1 killer of newborns.”
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
