Premature birth
If your delivery starts before 37 weeks of pregnancy, we speak of a premature birth, also known as premature or preterm delivery. This occurs in 7 to 8% of pregnant women.
Signals
There are several signals your body uses to indicate that your labor has started.
- Vaginal bleeding
- Abdominal/back cramps/hard bellies that come and go in a rhythm (e.g. a cramp every 10 minutes)
- Fluid loss / amniotic fluid; a lot at once or little bits at a time
Do you have any of these signals or are you worried? Then call your midwife.
Causes
Sometimes a cause can be found for a premature delivery, but this often remains unknown. Possible causes are;
- Group B Streptococcus (GBS) infection
- Deviation of your cervix (or mouth) (= uterine anomaly/cervix insufficiency)
- Multiple pregnancy
- Premature birth in previous pregnancy
- Smoking
- Teenage pregnancy (<16 years)
Implications
A premature baby is admitted to the hospital in an incubator in the Neonatology Department. Here the baby has time to learn how to live outside the womb. It depends on how early in the pregnancy you give birth, how big the consequences are for your baby. Common consequences are;
- Breathing problems due to lungs that are not yet mature
- Feeding problems due to problems with sucking, swallowing and breathing
- SIDS (= unexpected death of baby)
- Yellow vision (hyperbilirubinemia)
- Learning and behavioral delay
What happens if my labor starts too early?
As soon as you have signs that resemble a premature delivery, it is important that you contact the midwife. She will assess whether you are actually in labor and, if necessary, refer you to the gynaecologist.
Treatment depends on several factors; gestational age, condition of you and your baby and the degree of dilation. Different treatments that are possible;
- Contraction inhibitors
- Antibiotics
- Lung maturation (corticosteroids)
- Clamp on cervix (cerclage)
