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Medical Complexity Seen in 12 Percent of Military-Connected Children

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 11, 2025.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, April 11, 2025 -- The cumulative incidence of children with medical complexity (CMC)-defining diagnoses in military-connected children is 12.0 percent by age 60 months, according to a study published online April 8 in Pediatrics.

JoAnna K. Leyenaar, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., from Dartmouth Health Children's in Lebanon, New Hampshire, and colleagues identified CMC born between 2005 and 2015 and diagnosed from birth until age 60 months. The cumulative incidence of medical complexity was estimated and associations between birth outcomes and CMC-defining diagnoses were calculated.

The researchers found that the estimated cumulative incidence of CMC-defining diagnoses by age 60 months was 12.0 percent among 975,233 live births, with one-third and two-thirds diagnosed during the neonatal period and during infancy, respectively. The highest risks were seen for children born with versus without congenital anomalies, those born very preterm versus nonpreterm, and those with very low birthweight versus normal/high birthweight (adjusted hazard ratios, 25.2, 17.6, and 13.7, respectively).

"Although preterm birth, low birthweight, and congenital anomalies were strong risk factors for medical complexity, most CMC identified in this study did not experience these birth outcomes," the authors write. "These results provide valuable data to justify early intervention services as well as other programs and policies that support health care access, regularly scheduled health assessments, and care coordination for military-connected children."

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Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

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Posted April 2025

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