Authors

  1. Kennedy, Maureen Shawn MA, RN

Article Content

Don't deliver that preemie STAT. Premature fetuses showing signs of intrauterine growth retardation are often delivered immediately, a practice that carries a danger of severe disabilities. But waiting until a fetus is slightly more mature can lead to hypoxia and brain damage. According to the August 7 issue of the Lancet, a recent attempt to determine which approach leads to better outcomes shows that waiting may be preferable. Nearly 550 women with compromised fetuses were randomized to undergo either "immediate" delivery (within 48 hours) or delivery when physicians determined that they could wait no longer (roughly four days later). While overall mortality and severe disability rates in the two groups were comparable, the rate of severe disability at two years in fetuses younger than 31 weeks of gestational age at birth was almost twice as high in the immediate-delivery group.