Premature births is a problem which any pregnant woman can face. The modern medical equipment helps to keep safe all vital functions of the premature born baby helping his body to develop to normal level. Conditions of a mother’s womb are created artificially, and the child develops and gathers weight.
According to references of the World Health Organization (WHO) premature births can be divided into several categories.
On gestation terms, it means by the number of full weeks of pregnancy which passed between the first day of the last menses and the moment of cutting of a cord, premature births divide on:
- Very early premature births (between 22-27 weeks and 6 days and with weight from 500 g until 1000g): At this term, highly skilled help and care are necessary for nursing of the newborn. Fetus lungs are extremely unripe and surfactant and respiratory therapy are required. Surfactant is a substance, which is produced in lungs, covers alveolus from within and prevents their falling off on an exhalation. This substance is produced on 20-24 weeks and on 34-35 weeks of pregnancy. Indicators of mortality is rather high.
- Early premature births (between 28–33 weeks and 6 days with weight from 1000g to 2300g). At this term of gestation highly skilled help is also necessary, but surfactant and respiratory therapy are rarely required..
- Premature births (between 34–36 weeks and 6 days with weight about 2500g). Fetus lungs are almost mature and surfactant can be required only in rare instances. The forecast for life and health is good.
At the threat of premature births there are actions referred on rising of viability of a fetus. For the accelerated maturing of lungs, depression of need for performing respiratory therapy and improvement of the forecast, prophylaxis of the distress respiratory syndrome is carried out.
Premature births are divided on stages of development:
- menacing (are followed by nagging pains in a loin and in the bottom of a stomach, a tonus or reductions of a uterus, the neck of uterus is closed);
- beginning (are characterized by accurately expressed colicy pains, sanious allocations, coming out of mucous stopper, disclosure of a neck of uterus of 1-2 cm, bursting of waters );
- begun (with existence of regular contractions with intervals between them less than 10 minutes, a rupture of fetal covers, bursting of waters, disclosure of a neck of uterus more than 2 cm, allocations of bloody character from a genital tract, the prelying part of a fetus located at an entrance to a small pelvis).
At the menacing and beginning premature births, performing the treatment referred on pregnancy conservation is possible. In case of the begun labors, comprehensive examination of a condition of mother and fetusis needed to choose further tactics.
Premature births can also be:
- spontaneous premature births begin spontaneously. About 80% of all premature births are spontaneous;
- induced – caused artificially on medical indications, in the situations demanding completion of pregnancy (the indication are serious illness and states dangerous for woman’s life, death of fetus, malformations of fetus incompatible with life).
This information is based on materials from www.efcni.org. Special thanks to EFCNI for their support and advice.