Georgia got a passing grade on its preterm birth rate, the first time in the six year history of the March of Dimes national report card.
The state received a “C” on the report card for lowering its preterm birth rate to 12.7 percent from 13.2 percent.
Leigh Tenewitz, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Chapter of the March of Dimes attributed the drop in preterm birth rates - defined as before 37 weeks.
“We’ve helped women understand that when you’re pregnant, you need to go to the doctor right away,” said Tenewitz, who said her office worked closely with the Georgia Department of Public Health.
Other factors include a decline in the percentage of women of child-bearing age who smoke and encouraging women not to scheduled early C-sections - before 39 weeks - unless they’re a medical necessity, said Tenewitz. ” The idea is to keep cooking.”
Babies born prematurely are at greater risk of developing health complications because their lungs, brains and other organs may not be developed fully.
But, while a “C” may be a passing grade, more needs to be done to improve.
“Progress is good, but obviously we’re striving for bigger and better,” Tenewitz said.
She said the March of Dimes is confident that the grade can rise to a “B” next year.
Nationally, nearly every state saw its preterm birth rate decline since 2006, which was a national peak. The U.S. preterm birth rate is 11.5 percent, down from 12.8 percent in 2006.
The March of Dimes nationally has a goal of reducing preterm births to 9.6 percent of all live births by 2020.
The March of Dimes awards grants to organizations to help educate women about taking care of themselves and their unborn babies. It’s been extremely successful in peer settings, Tenewitz said. “It’s really about starting early and we’re doing a much better job with getting the word out.”
The CenteringPregnancy program at New Millennium Obstetrics and Gynecology in Riverdale is one such program.
Sabrina Brathwaite, centering program coordinator, said the project , which brings together expectant mothers in a group setting, provides information about pregnancy and prenatal care. “Knowledge is key,” she said. “Lots of times when patients come in, they don’t have enough time to ask questions and a lot of times they don’t know what kinds of questions to ask.”
Topics include risk of smoking, nutrition, signs of preterm labor and breastfeeding. The practice has seen a decline in preterm births.
As a result, “mothers take better care of themselves and they’re more involved in their care,” Brathwaite said.
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