DOHA: At least eight percent births happen a year at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) hospitals are premature, according to a senior official.
With a total of 21,000 babies being born at the Women’s Hospital, Al Khor Hospital and Al Wakrah hospital, around 1,680 of them are preterm births.
Prematurity occurs when babies are born before the normal term of 37-42 gestational weeks.
Preterm births are costly and the babies need multiple specialist care, says Dr Hilal Al Rifai, Medical Director of Women’s Hospital and the Director of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Director of Newborn Screening Programmes.
“Premature baby care is costly but HMC is providing best services for everyone, nationals and expatriates. Average cost of treatment for each child is around $4,000 per day,” Dr Al Rifai told an Arabic daily.
The causes for preterm births include several reasons as mother’s pregnancy with twins or more, which is causing the increase of the prematurity rate in Qatar.
Other reasons include some abnormalities existing in the mother’s uterus, especially in the cervix, diabetes, hypertension or other chronic diseases.
Although premature labour is a very serious complication of pregnancy, it strikes quickly and silently in many pregnant women, according to Dr Al Rifai.
“The earlier a baby is born, the more the baby has health problems and likely to stay in hospital for a longer period of time. Many premature babies require special care and spend weeks or months hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit,” he said.
Neonatal intensive care unit at the Al Wakrah hospital deals only with babies born after 30 gestational weeks, and most of the preterm births are dealt at the Women’s Hospital.
Recalling a specific case Dr Al Rifai said that the baby was born in 23 weeks, with 300 grammes and had to stay in the intensive care for four months and finally the baby’s life was saved.
“We have incubation rooms for babies who pass the risk stage. These babies are kept under observation on function of their organs and activities,” said Dr Al Rifai.
“The Women’s Hospital plays a major role in making follow up in the development of the baby. The baby’s safety and stability is frequently checked during the mother’s pregnancy. Medical interventions are made at any required situation,” he added.
The Peninsula
