Study into survival rates of extremely premature infants at a London Hospital

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 1st Feb 2008

As a paper is published giving survival rates for extremely premature infants at one London hospital, Dr Evan Harris MP, Liberal Democrat member of the former Commons Science & Technology Select Committee which conducted an inquiry into the Scientific Developments Relating to the Abortion Act 1967, said:

"Although this data is not as extensive or as recent as that published in the Trent region, or that soon to be for 2006 by the nationwide EPICure study, it is nevertheless interesting data for one unit from ten to thirty years ago. Those who are interested in evidence-based policy will be pleased to see that the author is not making the same comments about survival of 22 week and 23 week gestation neonates that he made in the media a few months ago prior to peer review and publication.

"Nevertheless, Professor Wyatt has still clouded the issue with incorrect assertions. He is wrong to assert that anyone is claiming that there has been no improvement in survival across the country as a whole since EPICure was undertaken in 1995 - the EPICure authors and the Trent researchers have specifically pointed to increased survival rates at 24 and 25 weeks.

"UCLH have now recognised that there are simply insufficient data from their single unit for 22 to 23 week gestation infants to make any claims about a reduction in the threshold of viability which informs the current 24-week limit on abortion.

"Peer review and publication of this data, which is long overdue, has demonstrated that the Science & Technology Committee conclusions were correct and that previous claims based on UCL data were overblown."