Babies born prematurely may have an increased risk of developing heart failure during childhood and adolescence, a new study has found.

Babies who are born early are much more likely to survive nowadays, even those born very prematurely. As a result, scientists have become particularly interested in the health consequences for those involved.

Research has already found links between premature births and conditions such as hypertension (high blood pressure) and stroke. However, this latest study has discovered a previously unknown link with heart failure.

Swedish researchers looked at a registry study involving 2.6 million people born between 1987 and 2012.

"We found that the risk of heart failure was higher for individuals born preterm, and inversely correlated with duration of pregnancy, in that the earlier you're born, the greater the risk," explained the study's lead author, Hanna Carr, a doctoral student at the Karolinska Institutet.

The study found that children born before the 28th week are 17 times more likely to suffer heart failure compared to those born at full term. Meanwhile, those born between 28 and 31 weeks were more than three times as likely to develop heart failure.

The results stood even when other factors were taken into account, such as birth weight, birth defects and parental heart conditions.

The researchers emphasised that the risk of developing heart failure during childhood and young adulthood is very small overall, even for those born premature. However, they noted that this higher risk could remain when those born prematurely grow older, ‘in which case more people will be affected as heart failure is much more common in older people'.

"In general the risk of heart failure can be reduced by adopting a healthy lifestyle, including refraining from tobacco use, keeping physically active, minimising your alcohol consumption and occasionally checking your blood pressure," they added.

Details of these findings are published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.