Exercise and the child born prematurely

With the increase in survival rates of children born prematurely, issues re lated to their active pursuits and responses to exercise have been gaining increasing attention. In some preterm children with an extremely low birthw eight, broncho pulmonary dysplasia or cerebral palsy exercise capacity may be limited, especially in tasks requiring good neuromotor coordination. Def iciencies in aerobic and anaerobic performance, strength and coordination m ay even occur in children without overt manifestations of a neuromuscular o r pulmonary disease. However, as a rule, children born prematurely may enga ge in physical activities and competitive sports without limitations. Exerc ise is safe in almost all such children as long as precautions are taken to avoid exercise-induced bronchoconstriction. However, to date there are no studies that have determined the efficacy of training. A wide variety of ac tivities should be encouraged in all children born prematurely at an early age, to support the development of skills and to compensate for the possibl e effects of their premature birth on coordination.