Some hospitals, especially those close to the Gaza periphery, are reporting spikes in premature births, or births before the 37th week of pregnancy. The spike is thought to be related to high levels of stress experienced by pregnant mothers due to the Gaza fighting and constant rocket fire on Israeli cities over the past month, hospital officials say.
Increases were reported in Soroka Hospital in Beersheba (20% increase over the previous year), Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon, and Kaplan Hospital in Rehovot (28%),
Smaller increases are reported farther north, with a slight rise in Hadassah’s two hospitals in Jerusalem and increases of between five and 10 percent in Assaf Harofeh Hospital near Tel Aviv and Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikvah.
The rate of premature births of twins has risen by 82% over last year nationwide.
Premature birth is a leading indicator of disease and death among newborns, Army Radio reporter Ya’ara Shapira notes.
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Sunday, August 3, 2014
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