Preterm Birth Tied to Long-Term Risk for CKD in the Child

By Kelly Young

Edited by Susan Sadoughi, MD, and Richard Saitz, MD, MPH, FACP, DFASAM

Children who are born preterm subsequently have an increased risk for developing chronic kidney disease (CKD) through mid-adulthood, a study in The BMJ suggests.

Using Swedish health registries, researchers followed 4.2 million infants for a maximum of 43 years. During this time, 0.1% developed CKD. Infants born preterm (before 37 weeks' gestation) and early term (37–38 weeks) had higher CKD rates than those born at full term (9.24 and 5.90 vs. 4.47 events per 100,000 person-years). The results were significant after adjustment for perinatal and maternal confounders.

The authors note that preterm birth interrupts fetal kidney growth, resulting in lower nephron counts and a greater proportion of abnormal glomeruli. They write: "People born prematurely need long term follow-up for monitoring and preventive actions to preserve renal function across the life course."