Premature birth is a serious and growing problem in the United States, according to the March of Dimes. The rate of premature births in the U.S. has increased 29 percent from 1981, with more than 470,000 babies born prematurely each year.
A new study published in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology showed weekly injections of a progesterone derivative for women with high-risk pregnancies might have prevented almost 10,000 premature births in 2002.
This reduction would have lowered the overall rate of births occurring before 37 completed weeks gestation by two percent in the U.S. The hormone derivative is known as 17P, short for 17 alpha hydroxyprogesterone caproate.
One in eight babies in the U.S. are affected by premature births, and researchers hope 17P will have a significant impact in reducing this number in the future.