What is the survival rate of a baby born at 25 weeks?

James Elgin Gill (born on 20 May 1987 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) was the earliest premature baby in the world, until that record was broken in 2014. He was 128 days premature (21 weeks and 5 days gestation) and weighed 1 pound 6 ounces (624 g). He survived.

Symptoms

Backache, which usually will be in your lower back.

Contractions every 10 minutes or more often.

Cramping in your lower abdomen or menstrual-like cramps.

Fluid leaking from your vagina.

Flu-like symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.

Increased pressure in your pelvis or vagina.

Increased vaginal discharge.

According to information provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield (insurance carrier), the survival rate for a 25 week preemie is between 50-80% and the chance of a permanent disability is 15-25%. At 27 to 29 weeks, survival rates are above 90% and disability rates are less than 10%.

Causes of premature birth. It’s not always possible to explain the causes of preterm birth and why it happens. There are risk factors for being born early, such as infection, placental problems or genetic problems, but in many cases the cause is unknown.

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight – 1 1/2 pounds – isn’t much more than an average rutabaga, but she’s beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she’ll start to look more and more like a newborn.

(It’s also known as premature labor.) If you deliver your baby before 37 weeks, it’s called a preterm birth and your baby is considered premature. Going into preterm labor does not mean you’ll have a premature baby. Up to half of the women who experience preterm labor eventually deliver at 37 weeks or later.

A normal pregnancy lasts for 40 weeks. Babies born after only 25 weeks are small and fragile. With intensive medical treatment most babies survive, but some do not. As the chances for babies born this early are pretty good, doctors usually provide intensive treatment and see how the baby responds.

Growth chart: Fetal length and weight, week by weekGestational ageLength (US)Weight (US)25 weeks13.62 inches1.46 pound26 weeks14.02 inches1.68 pound27 weeks14.41 inches1.93 pound28 weeks14.80 inches2.22 pounds

Babies born under 21 weeks did not survive, even in cases where medical treatment was provided. The typical survival rate for premature babies born at 22 weeks ranges from 2 percent to 15 percent and is “an uncommon event,” according the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Occasionally, labor begins prematurely, before the 37th week of pregnancy. This happens because uterine contractions cause the cervix to open earlier than normal. Consequently, the baby is born premature and can be at risk for health problems.

In cases involving conditions like preeclampsia, early delivery might even be the safest option. But there are still risks for babies born before full term. At 36 weeks, a baby is considered late preterm. The risk is much lower from babies born even at 35 weeks.

Your twins may be born a little early. Doctors consider 37 weeks to be full-term for most twin pregnancies. The average length of pregnancy for twins is 36.4 weeks. Babies who are born between 32 weeks and 37 weeks generally do very well.

Full-term babies usually weigh more than 2,500 grams (about 5 pounds, 8 ounces), whereas premature babies weigh anywhere from about 500 grams (about 1 pound, 1 ounce) to 2,500 grams.

A micro preemie is a baby who is born weighing less than 1 pound, 12 ounces (800 grams) or before 26 weeks gestation. Since these types of babies are born months before their due dates, micro preemies face long stays in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

According to studies between 2003 and 2005, 20 to 35 percent of babies born at 23 weeks of gestation survive, while 50 to 70 percent of babies born at 24 to 25 weeks, and more than 90 percent born at 26 to 27 weeks, survive. It is rare for a baby weighing less than 500 g (17.6 ounces) to survive.

These can include pneumonia (infection of the lungs) and meningitis (infection of the brain). Vision problems, like retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Children born prematurely are more likely than children born on time to have vision problems. Hearing loss, a common birth defect in premature babies.

The earliest a baby has been born and survived is 21 weeks and 5 days. Two premature babies hold the record for this. Usually, the earliest a baby can survive is about 22 weeks gestation. The age of viability is 24 weeks.

Your baby’s development at 37-40 weeks of pregnancy. At 37 weeks, your pregnancy is considered full-term. The average baby weighs around 3-4kg by now. Your baby’s gut (digestive system) now contains meconium – the sticky green substance that’ll form your baby’s first poo after birth.

By 29 to 30 weeks, a growing baby has matured a lot. Premature babies born between 29 and 30 weeks will still require long NICU stays, but their vital organs are much more developed than those of babies born earlier. At this age, the premature baby feels secure and cozy with swaddling and nesting.

Babies born at 26 weeks or later and weighting more than 2 pounds, 3 ounces now have a 95 percent or greater survival rate. Those born earlier (and weighing below 1 pound, 10 ounces) have a 1- to 50 percent survival rate.