31/08/2023
PRETERM (PREMATURE) MEWBORNS
A preterm newborn is a baby delivered before 37 weeks of gestation. Depending on when they are born, preterm newborns have underdeveloped organs, which may not be ready to function outside of the uterus.
🪴A previous preterm birth, multiple births, poor nutrition during pregnancy, late prenatal care, infections, and high blood pressure can increase the risk of a preterm birth.
🪴Because many organs are underdeveloped, preterm newborns may have difficulty breathing and feeding and are prone to bleeding in the brain, infections, and other problems.
🪴The earliest and smallest preterm newborns are at far greater risk of having problems, including developmental problems.
🪴Although some preterm newborns grow up with permanent problems, the majority of survivors have mild or no long-term problems.
🪴Early prenatal care may decrease the risk of a preterm birth.
🪴Preterm birth can sometimes be delayed for a brief period by giving the mother medications to slow or stop contractions.
When an infant is expected to be delivered significantly early, doctors can give the mother injections of a corticosteroid to speed the development of the fetus’s lungs and help prevent bleeding in the brain.
Risk factors before or during pregnancy:
✍️Conception by an assisted reproductive technique (such as in vitro fertilization), especially when such pregnancies involve multiple fetuses (twins, triplets, quadruplets)
✍️Multiple fetuses conceived naturally
✍️Little or no prenatal care
✍️Cigarette smoking
✍️Untreated infections during pregnancy, such as urinary tract infections, s*xually transmitted infections, or infection of the uterus (intra-amniotic infection)
✍️Previous surgery involving the cervix, and/or a weak cervix (cervical insufficiency)
✍️Heart disease
✍️High blood pressure
✍️Kidney disease
✍️Diabetes
✍️Preeclampsia or eclampsia
✍️Early separation of the placenta (placental abruption)
✍️Prelabor rupture of the membranes
Early prenatal care may dec