 Preterm infants account for 6 of all live-births in western societies. Scientific evidence can be found for altered palatal morphology in the short term among preterm children. Oral intubation and orogastric feeding might be contributing factors to these alterations, but it has not been examined whether in the absence of these interventions preterm infants palates are altered a priori as compared to term infants, e.g. due to immaturity of the bones or due to immaturity of oral function. Because of contradictory results, lack of longitudinal and high quality standard studies, the scientific evidence is also to weak to answer the question whether premature birth without or with a history of orotracheal intubation and orogastric feeding causes permanent alteration of orofacial development. The aim of the present study, therefore is to investigate in consideration of perinatal, biometrical, nutritional, functional and parental parameters. 