if u r born prematurly, does that mean u should start your age in minus months or days?

Question

because if u r premature, uve been in the womb for less time also, hence i think u should start in minuses if u r prermature. discuss.

Answer 1

If you're asking opinions: no, I don't think it should. Premature or not, chances are you spent a different number of days in utero than the person standing next to you did. Besides, a baby born at, say, 38 weeks is not considered premature...and, for that matter, a baby born at 41 weeks is considered to be "on time" as well. Yet, there's a 3 week difference in the time they spent in utero. I'd hardly advocate a system that says the latter child is already legally 1 week old when born.

Besides, let's remember that we really don't know *exactly* when conception occurs for, well, anyone. Pregnancy dating, estimated due dates, etc. are generally based on one of two things: the date of the mother's last menstrual period (we don't all have 28 day cycles....and let's face it, we don't all have the greatest memories when it comes to recalling exactly when our last menstrual cycle was), or ultrasound measurements, which aren't perfect either. Hey, if you want to get really picky....some embryos implant in the uterine lining on day 3 after fertilization....while others don't implant until day 10...a full week's difference. I'd hardly advocate taking that into "consideration," even if we could identify such things.

If you're asking about what the situation actually is: your birthday is the day you're born/delivered, and the calendar starts ticking then, whether you're born 10 weeks early, three weeks early, exactly at 40 weeks, or two weeks late. What does happen for premature infants, however, is that they are looked at both in terms of their "actual age" and their "corrected age" (also called the "adjusted age"). My babies were born 8 weeks early; 30 weeks after they were born, their "actual age" was 30 weeks, and their "corrected age" was 22 weeks...and that difference matters insofar as tracking their development. (For instance, my babies would not be expected to necessarily reach various developmental milestones at the same time as, say, babies born on the same day as them, but who were full term.) Even so, that distinction between "actual" and "corrected" age is used for only a year or so -- by two years most premature infants have "caught up" developmentally. I know that our pediatritian stopped tracking my babies' "corrected" age after they hit the 12 month (actual) mark.

Answer 2

Yes, up until the age of 2 (24 months) we do adjust the age. So, if you have a 5 month old baby that was 2 months early, then the baby's adjusted age is 3 months, and you want them to be doing what a 3 month old is doing. When I write reports on how premature babies are doing developmentally, I write their chronological age, and then their adjusted age underneath. A baby is considered delayed if they are not functioning at their adjusted age. I have had 24 weekers who come home after 10 weeks, and when I do an intial assessment I have to write -6 weeks for their adusted age since they should still be in the womb. By the age of 2, the normal range of development widens and there is no longer a need to adjust the baby's age,. Also, most babies catch up by then, if not sooner.

However, if someone asks you how old your baby is you go by the birthdate.

Answer 3

discuss? What is this, morality class? :p

Most preemies, particularly extremely premature preemies, do have an 'adjusted' age that both their parents and doctors refer to. This way, when measuring developmental milestones, a doctor is not constantly labelling a two month premature baby as 'slightly behind' when if they had been full term they would actually be 'above average'.

However, as preemies tend to 'catch up' with their full term counterparts before they are school age, it would be pointless to continue this 'adjusted age counting' beyond early childhood.

Answer 4

No. You go by when you're born, not by your due date. Your age is how long you've been out in the world.

But a baby born 3 months premature, it will sometimes be 3 months later than "normal" on some milestones, like rolling over or crawling. This is normal and will even out by the time the child is 3 or 4 years.

Answer 5

No, life starts at birth. The babies age at 1 week after birth is 1 week old. Premature babies are some what behind a full term baby. Most catch up within a year or so, some are always behind. But their aging starts at birth.

Answer 6

no, you do NOT start in minuses....they will still be as old as any fullterm baby BUT in terms of developmental milestones....they WILL be on an adjusted schedual....where as a fullterm baby should be able to do something by 6 months of age, if your baby was, say 2 months premature, they are given an extra 2 months to be able to do the same activity....so as long as they can do it at 8 months, everything is still on track. premature babies can have developmental delays...this is the reason for the adjusted milestone schedual

Answer 7

No most premature babies "catch up" to those who are born close to their normal birthdate within a year unless there are underlying health problems. By "catching up" I mean both physically and developmentally and unless there are those underlying problems, such as autism for example, premies usually follow the same patterns of development as other children.

Answer 8

I was a premature baby ..
I was due May 28th and born March 17th .. does that make me 2 months younger?

Answer 9

i was born @ 24 weeks and I have never had a minus age I'm 28 years old now, not all premayure babies have delays in milestones. I had no delays.

Answer 10

No. Your birthday is the day you are born.. Not your due date not anything else. Being born premature doesn't make you negative twenty days old... Think about it.