Today marks World Prematurity Day which is a day to raise awareness of the babies that are born too soon every year.

Rightnow, an estimated 1 in 13 babies are born prematurely each year in the UK- around 53,000. This is higher than average across Europe and the Government is currently not on track to deliver on its commitment to reduce premature birth rates from 8% to 6% by 2025.

The reason this is so important is because of the health impacts it has on the whole family. Babies born prematurely are extremely vulnerable with parents often spending months in hospital, unsure of their baby’s future. And, while most premature babies survive, complications related to premature birth remains a leading cause of death in children under the age of 5.

For lots of parents this can be a time of great stress and trauma as spending a lot of time in neonatal is something most parents don’t plan for.

Launch of the UK’s First National Centre for Preterm Birth Research:

Our research is changing guidelines and aims to improve care on a national scale, meaning there's consistent support available for anyone experiencing complications during pregnancy – including premature birth. We also know more needs to bedone to make sure the right care and support is in place for babies born too early.

That’s why this World Prematurity Day, we’ll also be sharing that we’re planning to open the UK’s first National Centre for Preterm Birth Research.This new collaborative centre, launching early next year, will be dedicated to finding the causes and treatments for premature birth and improve the chances of families taking a healthy baby home.  Find our more here.

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Ella Mae's Story is why we at Thrive Tribe should do all we can to raise the awareness of Tommy's, and what they try to achieve across the UK!

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Ella-Mae was referred to St Thomas’s pre-termclinic after a scan revealed her cervix was shortening and had a cervical cerclage stitch at 19 weeks, under the care of Professor Shennan’s team, as a ‘rescue cerclage’ to avoid going into labour so early into the pregnancy.

Although the procedure was against the grain of standardised care, this was a decision that saved Ella-Mae’s twins, Ruby and Bella who were born at 26weeks.  

“Professor Shennan and the team at Tommy’s gave my babies a chance.” 

With the opening of the new Preterm Birth Centre, we are able to bring together leading experts in women’s health and preterm birth research to advance our understanding and deliver new innovations and treatments to help give new generations a better start in life such as Ruby and Bella.

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