Long-term outcome of pre-term infants.

Recent advances in neonatal intensive care have resulted in significant improvements in the neonatal mortality rate in very low-birth-weight infants. Although there has been some decline in the prevalence of impairments, there are concerns that the improved survival rate may result in handicapped infants who would not have survived in an earlier era. This paper addresses the current survival and morbidity for very low-birth-weight infants and discusses the role of the family physician in meeting the new challenges in continuing care presented by these infants.