The March of Dimes Prematurity Campaign is a multi-year, multi-million dollar research, awareness and education campaign to help families have healthier babies.

• Premature (or preterm) babies are born too soon – before 37 completed weeks of gestation.
• In 2002, the preterm birth rate was 12.1%, reflecting more than 480,000 newborns and the highest rate ever reported for the U.S. This represents 1 in 8 babies in the U.S. born prematurely.
• The rate of preterm birth increased 29% between 1981 and 2002 from 9.4% to 12.1%.
• On an average day in the U.S., 1,317 babies are born preterm (before 37 weeks), 213 are born very preterm (before 32 weeks).
• Among racial/ethnic subgroups, preterm birth rates were highest among infants born to non-Hispanic black mothers (17.7%) in 2002.
• Women at greatest risk of preterm labor and birth are those who are pregnant with twins, triplets or more, those who have had a previous preterm birth, and those with certain uterine or cervical abnormalities.
• Preterm labor/delivery is the number one obstetrical challenge in the U.S.
• In 2001 prematurity/low birthweight was the leading cause of neonatal mortality in the U.S., accounting for nearly 24% of deaths in the first month of life.
• Preterm birth is a leading challenge in pediatrics, accounting for substantial long-term disabilities such as mental retardation, cerebral palsy, vision and hearing problems, and chronic lung disease.
• Causes of nearly half of all preterm births are unknown.
• Preterm labor can happen to any pregnant woman.

• In 2002, hospital charges for all infants, including healthy newborns, totaled $33.8 billion. Nearly half of that - $15.5 billion - was for babies with any diagnosis of prematurity/low birthweight (LBW).

• Raise awareness of the problems of prematurity to 60% for women of childbearing age and 50% for the general public by 2010.
• Reduce the rate of premature birth from 12. 1% in 2002 to 7.6% in 2010, in accordance with the U.S. Public Health Service Healthy People 2010 objective.

HOW: Six Aims of the Campaign

1. Generate concern and action around the problem of prematurity.
2. Educate women of childbearing age about risk reduction and warning signs of preterm birth.
3. Provide affected families with information, emotional support, and opportunities to help other families.
4. Assist health care practitioners to improve prematurity risk detection and address risk-associated factors.
5. Encourage investment of more public and private research dollars to identify causes of preterm labor and prematurity, and to identify and test promising interventions.

Advocate to expand access to health coverage in order to improve maternity care and infant health outcomes.