Signs of Preterm Labor
Posted by Healthfitline
On
Thursday, November 15, 2012
What is preterm labor? Preterm labor is labor that occurs before the 37th week of gestation. A woman is considered to be in active labor, once the contractions are appearing after every 5 minutes, have caused a cervical effacement of more than 80% and atleast over 1cm cervical dilation. Sometimes, a pregnant women may assume the preterm contractions are just an intense form of braxton hicks and may delay in seeking medical help.
Any pregnant woman who experience contractions that seems to increase in intensity before due date should seek medical help, promptly to prevent rupturing of the membrane. If membrane are ruptured, it becomes impossible to halt labor. Seeking medical help early if you think you are having a pre-mature labor is important. Nowadays, there many safe options that can be used to delay labor.
Definition of Preterm Baby
A preterm baby is a baby who is born before the 37th week of the gestation (days/weeks are counted starting from the first day of the last menstrual period). During each stage of fetal growth and development, different organs are developing, until by the end of 37th week when the baby can survive outside the mother's womb. The risks of the fetus developing abnormalities (birth defects) or even death is increased as the baby is born earlier before the 37th week.
Why Does Premature Birth Happen?
It is not very clear what causes it but there are possible reasons or risks factors that have been associated with having a premature birth or preterm labor. Such as;
- Maternal dehydration
- Urinary tract infections
- Poor nutritional status
- Multiple pregnancies
- Medical conditions like diabetes and blood pressure.
- Early labor induction
- Genetics influence
- Smoking history
- Infection of the fetal membrane and fluid (chorioamnionitis).
- Women working under streneous conditions during pregnancy.
Signs and Symptoms of Preterm Labor
The early symtoms of preterm labor include;
- Constant dull, low back pain
- Feeling of a pelvic pressure or as if your abdomen is tightening.
- Vaginal spotting
- Increasing vaginal discharge
- Abdominal and intestinal cramps similar to the one felt during menstruation.
- Uterine contractions that seems to appear more frequently and increasing in intensity.
Premature Labor Treatment
Treatment of premature labor is directed towards halting the labor (labor suppression), if labor is suspected to be occuring within the next 14 days but labor can only be halted if;
- The membrane are still intact.
- The fetus is not experiencing some form of distress.
- No evidence of bleeding
- The cervix is not effaced for more 50%.
- The cervix is not dilated for more than 4-5cm.
If none of the above problem is evidenced, the woman is then put under bed rest to relieve the pressure caused by the fetus to the cervix. If the woman is to be admitted in the hospital, intravenous fluid therapy is initated to make sure she remains well rehydrated. If she decides to go home, she is put under complete bed rest, advised to drink adequate amount of water and an oral medication may be prescribed to suppress labor.
She is also taught how to assess fetal movement before leaving the hospital (on average, a fetus moves around 10-12 times in one hour). If preterm labor occurs before the 34th week, woman may be given steroids to hasten the fetal lung maturity.
If by the time the woman is seeking medical help, the preterm labor is too much advanced and the fetus is very immature, labor cannot be halted and a cesarean birth is performed. Cesarean is usually the choice of delivery for immature babies to help to minimize pressure on fetal head which can lead to fetal brain hemorrhage.
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