Study suggests fewer babies born  prematurely during lockdown

University Maternity Hospital Limerick reported a 73% drop in the rate of premature babies with very low birth weight, writes Andreas Kluth

In Denmark, the number of babies born after less than 28 weeks of gestation — 40 weeks is the norm — dropped by 90% during the country’s month-long lockdown this spring

Here at last is some good news about the Covid-19 pandemic and the wholesale disruption to our lives it has caused: In many places with strict lockdowns this spring, there were far fewer premature births than is considered normal.

The trend doesn’t appear to be universal, but where it applies, the data are staggering. In Denmark, the number of babies born after less than 28 weeks of gestation — 40 weeks is the norm — dropped by 90% during the country’s month-long lockdown this spring. At University Maternity Hospital Limerick, the rate of preemies with very low birth weight was down by 73% between January and April compared with averages over the preceding two decades. Somewhat smaller decreases have been observed in parts of Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands. Elsewhere, clinics and doctors are now scurrying to examine their own data.