India, Feb. 2 -- While many of the increased risks are small, because around seven percent of babies in the UK are born moderately preterm each year, they could have significant consequences at population level, the authors of the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) funded study say.

For the study, researchers at the Universities of York, Leeds and Leicester examined data from more than 75 studies from around the world, which involved a total of over eight million children.

Compared with children born at full term, the study identified an increased risk of most developmental disorders. While risks decreased with each week of gestation, there was still evidence of a small increase in risk of several developmental disord...