Stillborn Babies

Still Born Babies What is stillbirth? The medical definition of a still birth is when a baby is born without any signs of life at or after 20 weeks or weighing more than 500g before labour. Death in the fetus may have occurred during pregnancy, which is intrauterine death, labour, or birth. Most still births are intrauterine. As rare as stillbirth is, it occurs once in every 160 pregnancies. What causes a stillbirth? There are a number of known causes of stillbirth. Sometimes more than one of these causes may contribute to the baby’s death essay writer reviews.

Common causes include: * Birth defects: Such as Down syndrome. Others have other birth defects resulting from genetic, environmental or unknown causes. * Placental problems: Placental abruption. In this condition, the placenta peels away, partly to almost completely, from the uterine wall before delivery. It results in heavy bleeding that can threaten the life of mother and baby. Sometimes it can cause the fetus to die from lack of oxygen. * Poor fetal growth: Fetuses who are growing too slowly are at increased risk of stillbirth.

About 40 percent of stillborn babies have poor growth. Increased risk by smoking or high blood pressure. * Infections: Infections involving the mother, fetus or placenta appear to cause about 10 to 25 percent of stillbirths. These include genital and urinary tract infections that may go undiagnosed until they cause serious complications * Chronic health conditions in the pregnant woman: About 10 percent of stillbirths are related to chronic health conditions in the mother, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney diseases, and blood clotting disorders. Umbilical cord accidents: These include a knot in the cord or abnormal placement of the cord into the placenta, causing there to be a shortage of oxygen to the fetus. Other causes of stillbirth include trauma (such as car accidents), postdate pregnancy (a pregnancy that lasts longer than 42 weeks), Rh disease (an incompatibility between the blood of mother and baby), and lack of oxygen (asphyxia) during a difficult delivery. These causes are uncommon. What are some factors that increase a mother’s chance of a stillbirth? Women 35 years old or older: As age increases, there are more risks to pregnancy and all around health. * Malnutrition: Just like us, the fetus will only survive for so long with little to no nutrition. * Inadequate prenatal care: Women who are a high risk pregnancy have to be more careful with their daily activities. Even a regular pregnancy requires rest, low stress and being aware of your surroundings. * Smoking: Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, including things like cyanide, lead, and at least 60 cancer-causing compounds.

When you smoke during pregnancy, that toxic brew gets into your bloodstream, the fetus’ only source of oxygen and nutrients. * Alcohol and drug abuse: Alcohol and drugs, poison the bloodstream to the fetus, it’s only source of oxygen and nutrients. * African-American ethnicity: It is not known why African American women are about twice as likely as other American women to have a stillborn baby. How is fetal death diagnosed? An ultrasound can tell if the fetus has died by showing the fetus’ heartbeat. It sometimes can help explain why the fetus died.

The doctor also can do some blood tests on the woman to help confirm why the fetus died. What happens after the diagnosis? After finding out that the fetus has died in the womb, the mother must go through with the birth of her stillborn. Whether the parents want to wait until labour comes naturally or if they’d like labour to be induced is their choice. Testing for the cause of the stillbirth requires permission from both parents. A specialized doctor will perform an autopsy on the baby to reveal the cause.

This is mostly done to prevent a repeated stillbirth. What are the chances of a repeat stillborn? The likelihood of a recurrent stillbirth depends upon the cause of your initial stillbirth. While repeated stillbirths do happen, they are very uncommon. Even in the case of genetic defects, recurrent stillbirths are very unlikely. Bibliography 1. Babycenter. “When a baby is stillborn – BabyCenter Canada. ” Pregnancy, baby and toddler health information at BabyCenter Canada – BabyCenter Canada. Babycenter, n. d. Web. <http://www. babycenter. a/a1014800/when-a-baby-is-stillborn#section1>. 2. March of Dimes. “Stillbirth | Baby | Loss and grief | March of Dimes. ” Pregnancy, Baby, Prematurity, Birth Defects | March of Dimes. http://www. marchofdimes. com/baby/loss_stillbirth 3. “Stillbirth: Trying to Understand – American Pregnancy Association. ” American Pregnancy Association – Promoting Pregnancy Wellness. National Stillbirth society, n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http://americanpregnancy. org/pregnancyloss/sbtryingtounderstand. html>. 4. March of Dimes. “StillbirthA – Loss and grief. Pregnancy, Baby, Prematurity, Birth DefectsA |A March of Dimes. March Of Dimes, n. d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013. <http://www. marchofdimes. com/baby/loss_stillbirth. html>. 1. “Understanding stillbirth — diagnosis and treatment. ” WebMD – Better information. Better health.. WebMD, 23 Apr. 2012. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. <http://www. webmd. com/baby/understanding-stillbirth-treatment>. 2. Epigee. org. “Pregnancy Help and Information: Stillbirth. ” Epigee Pregnancy Resource. http://www. epigee. org/pregnancy/stillbirth. html (accessed April 11, 2013).