The content of this article is not intended to replace professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, modifying or discontinuing any health treatment. If you are at risk of preterm labor or preterm birth, you may be afraid or afraid of your pregnancy. This may be especially true if you have a history of preterm labor or preterm birth. Contact your doctor to find healthy ways to relax and stay calm. Having one risk factor or even several risk factors does not mean that you will start labor early. Women without risk factors may also experience preterm labor with no known cause. However, if you have any of the risk factors listed below, discuss it with your doctor and know what to do if preterm labor occurs. It is difficult for health professionals to predict which women with preterm births will have a preterm birth. The goals of monitoring and treatment are to reduce the risk of preterm birth and protect your health and that of your fetus. If you develop signs or symptoms of preterm labor, contact your doctor immediately.
Depending on the circumstances, you may need immediate medical attention. The U.S. Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reports that only about 10% of women with premature birth give birth within seven days. In about 30% of cases of preterm labour, labour stops on its own. The doctor will determine if a treatment, e.B. Medications to try to delay the birth or speed up the baby`s development, depending on your situation. If symptoms worsen or don`t go away after an hour, call your doctor again or go to the hospital. When you call your doctor, be sure to tell him that you are worried that you have started preterm labor. The only sure way to know if you are in preterm labor is to examine your cervix.
If your cervix opens, preterm labor could be the cause. Doctors will not try to stop contractions if the baby is over 34 weeks old and the lungs are developed, or if there are concerns about the health of the mother or baby. Pregnancy is usually a time of happiness and anticipation, but it can also be a time of uncertainty. Many women worry about what will happen to their baby and wonder, “Is everything okay”? Some women worry about going into labor early. Preterm labor occurs in about 12% of all pregnancies. However, by knowing the symptoms and avoiding certain risk factors, a woman can reduce her chances of going into labor prematurely. Regular prenatal care with your obstetrician will help you identify most of these concerns. In fact, good prenatal care and proper nutrition are two of the best ways to reduce your risk of preterm labor. Preterm labor does not always lead to premature delivery. Some women with preterm labor and early dilation of the cervix are put to rest in bed until the pregnancy progresses.
Most babies born before 24 weeks have little chance of survival. Some women tend to give birth early. Those who have a short or weak cervix (the lower part of the uterus that is connected to the vagina) or who have already had a premature baby are more likely to enter labor early. In these cases, the doctor may recommend treatments such as: A normal pregnancy lasts about 40 weeks. Sometimes labor begins prematurely, before the 37th week of pregnancy. This happens because uterine contractions cause the cervix to open earlier than normal. Therefore, the baby is born prematurely and may be at risk of health problems. Fortunately, research, technology and medicine have helped improve the health of premature babies. It can be difficult to stop preterm labor, especially if the cervix has already dilated. Thus, the two main goals of treatment are to delay birth long enough to transfer a mother to a hospital with a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and to accelerate a baby`s lung development by providing steroids. Tocolytics can delay labor, often only for a few days.
This delay may give you time to seek treatment with ACS or go to a hospital that has a NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). A NICU is a specialized kindergarten where newborns receive medical care. If you have a health problem, such as a heart problem or severe preeclampsia, some tocolytics may not be safe for you. Preeclampsia is a condition that can occur after the 20th week of pregnancy or immediately after pregnancy. This is when a pregnant woman has high blood pressure and signs that some of her organs, such as her kidneys and liver, may not be functioning properly. Some of these signs include protein in the urine, blurred vision, and severe headaches. If labor does not stop and a woman is born early, a team of health professionals will take care of the baby. The team may include a neonatologist. If symptoms persist or worsen, such as . B contractions that become more frequent or painful, call their doctor again or go to the hospital. The only way to determine if you are really in preterm labor is for the doctor to examine your cervix. If it begins to open up, early birth may be to blame.
Your doctor will tell you about their results and available options once they have examined you. You will want to know what information you have. B for example the time of the contractions, the time they started and any other signs or symptoms you have felt. Even if you are more at risk of preterm labor, there are many things you can do to have a healthy, long-term pregnancy. Get good prenatal care from your obstetrician. Your doctor will monitor your health and that of your baby. Be sure to discuss any symptoms that worry you, even if you think they seem unimportant. Women at risk of preterm labor, especially those who have had one or more preterm births, may be candidates for one or more of the following treatments: Regardless of the specific procedures recommended by your doctor, your doctor will discuss the pros and cons of each, the expected results of the treatments, and the reasons for the recommendations. If the treatments do not stop preterm labor or if the doctor believes that you or your baby are in danger, you will give birth to the baby.
Sometimes a caesarean birth (caesarean section) may be recommended if the doctor believes there is an emergency situation. There are symptoms of preterm labor, but no change in the cervix Your obstetrician may perform a pelvic exam to see if your cervix has begun to change. You may need to be examined several times over a period of a few hours. Their contractions can also be monitored. If you have any of the following risk factors, it is important to know the symptoms of preterm labor and what to do when it occurs: Women have the greatest risk of preterm labor if: Tocolytics. These medications can be used to slow or stop labor. There are several types, including: Preterm labor leads to changes in the cervix. Changes include shedding (thinning of the cervix) and dilation (opening of the cervix). Signs and symptoms are as follows: Mothers who think they are in labor or who have contractions (abdominal pain or cramps) should immediately call their doctor or midwife. If there is bleeding or your water breaks (which can be an intermittent leak, a constant leak or a swarm of fluids), it is important to go to the hospital immediately.
In some cases, yes. For about 3 in 10 women, preterm labor stops on its own. If this does not stop, treatments may be given to try to delay childbirth. In some cases, these treatments can reduce the risk of complications when the baby is born. Tocolytics do not address the underlying cause of preterm labor and have not been shown to improve babies` outcomes. Your doctor will not recommend a tocolytic if you suffer from certain conditions, such as . B pregnancy-related high blood pressure (preeclampsia). Preterm labor occurs when labor begins before the 37th week of pregnancy. With contractions, changes occur in the cervix that signal that labor begins. The cervix begins to become thinner, a process called extinction, and it begins to dilate, allowing the baby to enter the birth canal. Normal pregnancies last about 40 weeks, so any labor that begins before is called early labor or preterm labor. Thanks to advances in health care for premature babies, more infants born 40 weeks ago are surviving and doing very well.
Yet, preventing early labour and delivery is the best way to ensure a healthy baby. You may have experienced painless Braxton Hicks contractions during the third trimester of pregnancy. These are usually irregular and will not cause your cervix to open. As your due date approaches, these “exercise contractions” may become more common, and it`s common for women to worry about being in labor. For women in their first pregnancy, it can be difficult to distinguish a “real” contraction from a Braxton Hicks contraction later in pregnancy. In addition to the above risk factors, the CDC has identified some particular risks based on age and ethnicity. For example, preterm labor and childbirth are 50% more likely in women of African American descent than in Caucasian women. Women under the age of 18 are also more likely to have a premature birth, as are women over the age of 35. There are a number of treatments that doctors turn to during preterm labor. Bed rest, pelvic rest, and hydration (sometimes with intravenous fluids) can sometimes slow or stop contractions. If you are not hospitalized, you may need to schedule weekly or more frequent visits to your doctor so that he or she can monitor for signs and symptoms of preterm labor.
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