Groundbreaking global studies focused on preterm birth and disability have been carried out by almost 50 researchers at 35 different institutions and launched in association with World Prematurity Day. Findings from these studies show that baby boys are at a higher risk of death and disability as a result of preterm birth than baby girls are. These disabilities can range from learning difficulties and blindness to deafness and motor skill issues, including cerebral palsy.

The six major papers included in Pediatric Research, which was published by the journal Nature, show that boys are 14 percent more likely to be born preterm than girls.

“Baby boys have a higher likelihood of infections, jaundice, birth complications, and congenital conditions but the biggest risk for baby boys is due to preterm birth. For two babies born at the same degree of prematurity, a boy will have a higher risk of death and disability compared to a girl. Even in the womb, girls mature more rapidly than boys, which provides an advantage, because the lungs and other organs are more developed,” says Professor Joy Lawn, M.D., PhD, a neonatologist and epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and team leader of the new research.

“One partial explanation for more preterm births among boys is that women pregnant with a boy are more likely to have placental problems, pre-eclampsia, and high blood pressure, all associated with preterm births.”

However, after the first month of life, in some societies where girls routinely receive less nutrition and medical care, the girls are more likely to die than boys, despite this biological survival advantage they have been given.

These are only a few of the new and confirmed findings on the death and disability of premature infants which has become a massive global health problem. Of the 15.1 million babies born too soon, about 1 million die due to prematurity, accounting for one-third of the world’s 2.9 million newborn deaths. This has a huge impact on families, societies and economies in both high and low income countries. Newborn conditions, especially premature birth, are responsible for almost 10 percent of the global burden of disease for all ages and all countries.

Improving prematurity prevention and care is a key part of the bigger goal of reducing newborn deaths and improving quality care at the time of birth, when risks are highest for both women and their babies.

“Three quarters of the 1 million babies who die each year from complications associated with prematurity could have been saved with cost-effective interventions, even without intensive care facilities,” says UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, whose Every Woman Every Child movement has provided major worldwide strength for both women and children. “World Prematurity Day is an opportunity to mobilize partners to improve the care available to all women and children.”