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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science pp 1–3Cite as

Low Birthweight and Preterm Infants

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Synonyms

Premature infants; Small infants

Definition

Infants who are smaller or have a lower gestational period than is normative.

Introduction

Low birthweight and preterm status of infants is an international source of concern, as is reflected in the priority placed on this issue by UNICEF and the World Health Organization. Although the death rates of such children are much higher in undeveloped countries, they also are a source of concern for many national agencies in the USA (e.g., US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). By their shared definition, infants born before 37 months of gestation or who weigh less than 5.5 lb are at risk for early health problems and a variety of long-term health, behavioral, and learning problems.

Doster et al. (2008) provided specific examples of the long-term outcomes of a large sample (N= 903,402) of low birthweight and preterm infants in Norway. They found that surviving children were more likely...

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References

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

    Daphne Blunt Bugental

Authors
  1. Daphne Blunt Bugental
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daphne Blunt Bugental .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland Univ Dept of Psycholgy, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana Weekes-Shackelford

  2. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  3. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Bugental, D.B. (2016). Low Birthweight and Preterm Infants. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_1900-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_1900-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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