2.5.1  Characteristics of premature babies

Premature babies have a number of characteristics depending on their gestational age:

• Skin: may be reddened. The skin may be thin so blood vessels are easily seen.
• Lanugo: there is a lot of fine hair all over the baby’s body.
• Limbs: the limbs are thin and may be poorly flexed or floppy due to poor muscle tone.
• Head size: appears large in proportion to the body. The fontanelles (open spaces where skull bones join) are smooth and flat.
• Chest: no breast tissue before 34 weeks of pregnancy.
• Sucking ability: weak or absent.
• Genitals: in boys the testes may not be descended and the scrotum may be small; in girls the clitoris and labia minora may be large.
• Soles of feet: creases are located only in the anterior (front) of the sole, not all over, as in the term baby.