text: what are my baby's survival chances if born premature at 26 weeks? basically i would like to know the chance of survival if a baby is delivered at the gestational age of 26 weeks.  also, if he survives, what kind of problems could he have later on in life? i work for an early childhood intervention program which commonly works with premature babies.  the good news is i have seen babies born as early as 24  weeks survive.  statistics say that ethnicity does play into this.  black females have the highest survival rate and white males the lowest.  some common problems i have seen in preemies are: breathing problems, make sure he gets rsv shot oct. -mar. eye problems - most extreme preemies have retinopathy of prematurity (rop), this cause various eye and vision problems, surgery can help or it can resolve itself but most likely he will need glasses.   tone problems - muscles tend to be very tight or sometime very soft, this usually causes motor delays reflux, just about every preemie is on reglan and or zantac.   feeding issues, it is also very common for preemies to be tube fed because they do not have the strength to get a good suck going or they have gi problems infection risks are higher for preemies and some strong antibiotics can cause hearing loss.  studies do indicate that preemies are at higher risk for learning disabilities such as attention deficit disorder, get occupational therapy as early as possible to help regulate his sensioneural motor skills!!! the good news is that there is great medical care out there and every state has an infant and babies program which help support and educate families and provide a variety of intervention services (therapies ) to babies.  if your baby is early make sure you look for your state's program as soon as he is out of the hospital.