According to the World Health Organisation preterm birth is any birth before 37 completed weeks of gestation or less, which is calculated from the first day of a woman’s Menstrual Period (LMP). According to Marlow, preterm births are categorized into sub groups and these are: Extremely preterm births are <28 weeks, very preterm births are babies born during 28 ≤ 32 weeks and moderate preterm include babies born in the range of 32 ≤ 37 completed weeks of gestation. The lower limit of gestation is considered to be the period of viability; it varies from 20, 22 or 26 weeks in developed countries while in developing countries it is 28 weeks. Preterm births occur due to several causes which can be classified into two broad subtypes which are; spontaneous preterm birth due to spontaneous onset of labour or following Prelabour Premature Rupture of Membranes (PPROM) and provider-initiated preterm birth which is by inducing labour or elective caesarean birth before 37 completed weeks of gestation due to maternal or foetal indications or other non-medical reasons. The cause of preterm labour in about 50%, cases is idiopathic and it is often multifactorial. Factors increasing the incidence of preterm labour include history, complications in present pregnancy categorised as maternal, foetal and placental causes, as well as iatrogenic factors. According to Rogers and Velton, in addition to its significant contribution to mortality, some survivors are prone to adverse health effects that may continue throughout life. These include impairing neurodevelopmental functioning, learning impairment and visual disorders and affecting long-term physical health with a higher risk of non-communicable disease. These effects are a burden on families, society and the health system. As such, preterm birth is one of the largest conditions in the global burden of disease analysis given the high mortality and the considerable risk of life long impairment