Premature Birth
The following is from MarchofDimes.Com
One in eight women will give birth too early—before
37 weeks of pregnancy. Help your baby be born at the right time. Learn the
signs of preterm labor and what to do if you think you are having preterm
labor.
Preterm labor is labor that occurs before your 37th week of pregnancy. (Most
pregnancies last 38-42 weeks; your due date is 40 weeks after the first day
of your last menstrual period.) Preterm labor can happen to any woman: Only
about half the women who have preterm labor fall into any known risk group.
About 12 percent of births (1 in 8) in the United States are preterm. Babies
who are born preterm are at higher risk of needing hospitalization, having
long-term health problems and of dying than babies born at the right time.
Preterm labor may sometimes be stopped with a combination of medication and
rest. More often, birth can be delayed just long enough to transport the
woman to a hospital with a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and to give
her a drug to help speed up her baby’s lung development.
What you can do
Call your health care provider or go to the hospital
right away if you think you are having preterm labor. The signs of preterm
labor include:
Contractions every 10 minutes or more often (they don't have to be painful)
Clear, pink or brownish fluid (water) leaking from your vagina
Pelvic pressure—the feeling that your baby is pushing down
Low, dull backache
Cramps that feel like your period
Abdominal cramps, with or without diarrhea
Your provider may tell you to
Come into the office or go to the hospital
Stop what you're doing. Rest on your left side for one hour
Drink 2-3 glasses of water or juice (not coffee or soda)
If the symptoms get worse or do not go away after one hour,
call your health care provider again or go to the hospital. If the symptoms go
away, relax for the rest of the day. If the symptoms stop but come back, call
your health care provider again or go to the hospital.
You don’t need to have all the symptoms to have preterm labor. Take action
even if you have only one.
What Is Preterm Labor and Birth?
Preterm birth is any birth that occurs before the 37th
week of pregnancy. It is the cause of many infant deaths and lingering infant
illnesses in the United States. Every pregnant woman needs to know about preterm
labor and birth—why it happens and what she can do to help prevent it.
Preterm birth occurs in about 11 percent of all pregnancies in the United
States, often for reasons we just don't understand. A normal pregnancy should
last about 40 weeks. That amount of time gives the baby the best chance to be
healthy. A pregnancy that ends between 20 weeks and 37 weeks is considered
preterm, and all preterm babies are at significant risk for health problems.
You might have read in the newspapers about babies who are born really early
and do very well, but it's important for you to know that those babies are the
exceptions. Babies who are born preterm are at a very high risk for brain and
other neurological problems, breathing problems, digestive problems, and death
in the first few days of life. Unfortunately, they also are at risk for problems
later in their lives in the form of delayed development and learning problems in
school, so the effects of preterm birth can be devastating throughout the child's
life. The earlier in pregnancy a baby is born, the more health problems it is
likely to have.
Why Does Preterm Labor Occur?
We're not really sure. There are many theories, but none of
them has been proven. Stress might play a part for some women, personal health
history or infection for others, or activities in pregnancy such as smoking or
drug use for others.
Who Is at Risk for Preterm Labor?
Preterm labor and delivery can happen to any pregnant
woman. But they happen more often to some women than to others. Researchers
continue to study preterm labor and birth. They have identified some risk
factors, but still cannot predict which women will give birth too early.
Having a risk factor does not mean a woman will have preterm labor or
preterm birth.
Three groups of women are at greatest risk of preterm labor and birth:
Women who are pregnant with twins, triplets or more
Women who have had a previous preterm birth
Women with certain uterine or cervical abnormalities
If you have any of these three risk factors, it's especially
important for you to know the
signs and symptoms of preterm labor and what to do if they occur.
Researchers also have identified other risk factors. For instance, African-American
women and women younger than 17 or older than 35 are at greater risk than other
women. Experts do not fully understand why and how these factors increase the risk
that a woman will have preterm labor or birth.
Lifestyle Risks
Some studies have found that certain lifestyle factors may
put a woman at greater risk of preterm labor. These factors include:
Late or no prenatal care
Smoking
Drinking alcohol
Using illegal drugs
Domestic violence, including physical, sexual or emotional abuse
Lack of social support
High levels of stress
Long working hours with long periods of standing
Low income
Medical Risk Factors
Certain medical conditions during pregnancy may increase the
likelihood that a woman will have preterm labor. These conditions include:
Premature rupture of the membranes (the sac inside the uterus that holds the baby breaks too soon)
Urinary tract infections, vaginal infections, sexually transmitted infections and possibly other infections
High blood pressure
Diabetes
Clotting disorders (thrombophilia)
Being underweight before pregnancy
Obesity
Short time period between pregnancies (less than 6-9 months between birth and the beginning of the next pregnancy)
Certain birth defects in the baby
Bleeding from the vagina
Preventing Preterm Labor and Birth
You can help in preventing preterm birth by becoming aware of
the symptoms of preterm labor and following some simple instructions. The key to
preventing preterm birth if preterm labor occurs is to get medical assistance
quickly.
Some medications sometimes work to stop labor if they are given early enough.
Medications called glucocorticoids, if given 24 hours before birth, can help
to accelerate the baby's lung and brain maturity, thus cutting down on some of
the worst health problems a preterm baby has. Only if a woman receives medical
care quickly can these drugs be helpful, so knowing what to look for is
essential.
Symptoms of Preterm Labor
Remember, preterm labor is any labor that occurs between 20 weeks
and 37 weeks of pregnancy. Here are the symptoms:
Uterine contractions coming every 10 minutes or more often (they don't have to be painful)
Clear, pink or brownish fluid (water) leaking from your vagina
Pelvic pressure (may feel like the baby is pushing down)
Low, dull backache
Menstrual-like cramps (which may come and go)
Abdominal cramps (with or without diarrhea)
If you start to have any of these symptoms between 20 weeks
and 37 weeks of pregnancy, follow the instructions in the section below "What
to do if you have symptoms of preterm labor."
Don't let anyone tell you that these symptoms are "normal discomforts of pregnancy"!
If any of them (you don't need to have all of them) happen before your 37th week of
pregnancy, you need to do something about it.
What to Do if You Have Symptoms of Preterm Labor?
Call your health care provider or go to the hospital right away
if you think you are having preterm labor. Your provider may tell you to:
Come to the office or go to the hospital for evaluation.
Stop what you are doing and rest on your left side for one hour.
Drink 2-3 glasses of water or juice (not coffee or soda).
If the symptoms get worse, or don't go away after one hour, call
your health care provider again or go to the hospital. If the symptoms go away, take
it easy for the rest of the day. If the symptoms stop but come back, call your health
care provider again or go to the hospital.
When you call your provider, be sure to tell the person on the phone that you are
concerned about the possibility of preterm labor. The only way your provider can
know if preterm labor is starting is by doing an internal examination of your cervix
(the bottom of your uterus). If your cervix is opening up (dilating), preterm labor
could be beginning.
You and your health care provider are a team, working together to have a healthy
pregnancy and healthy baby. Your team works best when both of you participate fully,
so your knowledge about preterm labor can be essential in helping to prevent a
preterm birth. Talk to your health care provider about all of this, and be sure
to keep all of your prenatal care appointments. Preterm birth is one of the
omplications of pregnancy that health care providers are working hard to eliminate.
Your participation in this effort is just as important as theirs!
Note: Progesterone.Com is not affiliated with MarchofDimes.Com
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