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Table
Indicator name:
Births, preterm (<37 weeks of gestation) rate per 100 live births
Short name:
Preterm birth rate
Data type:
Rate
Indicator Id:
4420
Topic:
Risk factors
Rationale:
Globally, prematurity is one of the leading causes of deaths among newborns and children under five years of age. It is also associated with short- and long-term effects, such as poor health and growth, intellectual and mental disabilities and early onset of chronic diseases.
Definition:
The number of newborns born alive before 37 weeks of pregnancy are completed, per 100 live births per year.
Method of measurement
Data from civil registration, surveys, administrative reporting systems/registries: the number of preterm births divided by the total number of live births. Data from health facilities: the number of preterm births divided by the total number of documented live births in the facility.
Method of estimation:
Estimates of preterm birth rate at national levels were predicted from all included input data using a Bayesian multilevel-mixed regression model. For countries and areas with no data or data not meeting the inclusion criteria, preterm birth estimates were predicted from country-level low birthweight, regional intercepts, and time-trends from data inputs within the region were used to predict their preterm birth estimates in the final model. The methodology is presented in Ohuma et al. 2023. National, regional, and global estimates of preterm birth in 2020, with trends from 2010: a systematic analysis. Lancet..
Method of estimation of global and regional aggregates:
Regional and global preterm birth rates are weighted averages of national preterm birth rates, using the UN World Population Prospects 2022 live birth estimates.
Other possible data sources:
Special studies
Preferred data sources:
Administrative reporting systems
Unit of Measure:
Per 100 live births
Comments:
For countries and areas with no preterm birth data, predicted preterm birth rate may be lower or higher than the true preterm birth rate. Countries and areas without data are systematically different to those with data, and since the model is trained on countries with data (mostly high-income countries), estimates generated for countries without data inputs should be interpreted with caution. Moreover, these estimates are likely underestimates as the denominator only includes live births and excludes stillbirths
Contact person email:
morana@who.int
Name:
Allisyn Moran
Links:
Study protocol for WHO and UNICEF estimates of global, regional, and national preterm birth rates for 2010 to 2019 
Born too soon: the global action report on preterm birth
Indicator Metadata Registry List
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