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Late pregnancy warning signs (part 2)

Premature rupture of membranes (PROM)🤰SymptomsWhen you deliver your baby👶, membranes rupture, the amniotic sac🌊 that surrounds your baby breaks and flows out. While rupture of membrane is a normal phenomenon during labor, if it happens too early, it can cause serious complications for the fetus.🤰TreatmentWhen PROM occurs at 34 weeks or more and the amniotic fluid shows that the lungs of your baby have matured enough, doctors may recommend you to deliver the baby👶 because possible signs of infection can lead to more serious complications.🩺 The risks associated with prematurity diminishes significantly as the fetus is reaching the due date. When your baby comes out early, your little one will be intensively taken care of by nursery services and stay healthy.😃 Problems with placenta🤰Placenta previaIf you have placenta previa, you will notice bright red, profuse, and painless vaginal bleeding.🩸 It often occurs after the 28th week of pregnancy and is detected by ultrasound.🩺 Since the placenta abnormally comes out first and blocks the opening to the cervix, the doctor usually suggests cesarean delivery.👩‍⚕️ If labor is unstoppable and the baby is in distress, you and your baby are in life-threatening hemorrhage, immediate cesarean delivery is conducted despite the fetus' age.⚠️ If the bleeding is under control and the labor can be postponed, the doctor👩‍⚕️ will try to prolong your pregnancy days to let your baby have more time to fully develop. 🤰Placental abruptionThis is a rare condition in which the placenta detaches from the uterus prior to labor. It can result in fetal death and cause serious bleeding🩸 and shock in the mother. Sometimes placental abruption doesn't always show harbingers, but some moms experience heavy bleeding and strong contractions.👩 The doctor can evaluate your symptoms and the baby's heartbeat💓 to determine fetal distress and rapidly conduct cesarean delivery if necessary.Post-term pregnancy🤰Post-term pregnancyAny pregnancy lasting longer than 42 weeks is considered post-term or post-date pregnancy. Although it's not dangerous to the mother, it can cause some problems to the baby.👶Since the placenta is designed to effectively function in 40 weeks, starting from week 41, the placenta is less likely to work well.🙁 Decreased amniotic fluid around the fetus, decreased oxygen supply to the fetus, compression of the umbilical cord are reflected on the fetal heart monitor in a pattern called late decelerations. Fetal death can be one of the possible outcomes when the pregnancy is post-term.😢 🤰Meconium aspiration syndromeMeconium is your newborn's first poop.🚻 Most fetuses that have this first bowel movement inside the uterus have no problems. However, if your stressed fetus inhales the meconium, your baby may have trouble breathing because the meconium is stuck in the lungs.😮‍💨 Doctors will have to clear the airways as much as possible for your baby to breathe. Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR)🤰SymptomsIUGR refers to abnormal growth when your baby in the womb👶 does not grow as much as expected to a certain age. There are two main types of IUGR. Symmetrical IUGR indicates that all parts of the baby's body are similarly small in size, while asymmetrical IUGR means the baby's head and brain are normal-sized but the body is smaller. 🤰TreatmentUltrasound🩺 is done over and over again to determine whether the fetus is small for gestational age. IUGR babies tend to have less body fat and be less able to tolerate stress of labor and maintain body temperature and body glucose after birth. If your baby stops growing in the womb, the doctor may recommend induction or cesarean delivery. Luckily, most growth-restricted babies will catch up their growth by two years old and develop healthily afterwards.😃 

What if your baby falls?

Oops did your baby just fall off a chair? Let's go check them out if there is any serious injury!What should you do when your baby just falls off?👶The baby looks okay to youThe moment your baby falls off gives you an adrenaline rush.🏃‍♀️ You run as fast as you can to your baby to make sure that your child doesn't have any serious wounds.If the baby looks okay, probably the fall doesn't cause serious injury or break some bones.🦴 You still need to continue observing your baby for the next 24 hours to see if any symptoms develop. 👶The baby feels uncomfortableIf your baby is crying out loud, probably they must have gotten hurt or they are irritable because of the fall.😭 The best decision is to take them to the doctor to get checked out thoroughly. It's not necessary to keep the child awake although it's better to monitor their health when they are still active.🤾‍♀️ What is dangerous is that they probably fall on their head, feel dizzy and want to sleep but can't easily wake up. If they sleep, you should wake them after two hours to see if the child is still alert.💤Stay calm to identify serious signs👶Simple signsYou can't help feeling anxious when you see your child crying nonstop.😭 If the baby just has a light bump, their tears come from pain or fright and will not last longer than 10 minutes. 👶Serious signsConstant headache or dizziness can be the result of a serious hit.🤕 Your baby might be extremely irritable and cry incessantly. More severely, you may see them excessively sleepy and have a difficult time waking up. The baby might vomit after a strong hit on their head.🤮Treatment for your baby👶Treatment at homeIf you have successfully ruled out serious injury, you can treat your baby's mild bump at home. Wrap an ice pack🧊 in a thin towel or diaper and hold it onto the bump for fifteen or twenty minutes. You can nurse them or say something sweet to your little one to soothe them and distract them from the pain.😀If your baby is constantly in pain, you can give them the appropriate amount of acetaminophen or ibuprofen.💊 Avoid aspirin because it can cause a rare but serious condition called Reye's syndrome.👶Call the ER!If your child experiences loss of consciousness, unresponsiveness, non stop bleeding, you have to call for an emergency.🚑 Any signs of a fractured bone, a concussion, inability to walk steadily or talk, prolonged screaming indicate your baby can be in danger. You have to talk to their doctor immediately and take the baby to the emergency room.👩‍⚕️

Why does my baby stiffen their legs and arms?

When you pick up your baby from the crib🛏️, you might have noticed their hands and legs got stiffened! This is normal! It usually happens when your little one gets too excited or frustrated👶, and her muscle gets tightened up. However, rarely there are some other cases that can indicate a problem!What is hypertonia?It is considered hypertonia when a baby's muscles get stiff and hard to move because of damage to the brain or spinal cord that controls muscle movements🧍. Babies with hypertonia move in different ways because their range of motion is limited. Walking, balancing, grabbing, and letting go of objects could be difficult for them.There are two types of hypertonia, which are Spastic and Dystonic. Spastic hypertonia is when muscle spasms when a baby moves. On the other hand, when a baby is with Dystonic hypertonia, their muscle tone stays the same whether the baby is moving or still. In order to figure out which hypertonia the baby has, doctors will move a baby's muscles in different directions at various speeds🚶.Why does it happen? Any symptoms I should be aware of?To move muscles, we send signals from the nervous system travel to the nerves. However, if the brain🧠 or spinal cord is injured, those signals can't reach the nerves, which causes hypertonia! This could happen when a baby had a lack of oxygen during birth. If his/her brain is injured or has a tumor, could cause hypertonia as well.A baby with hypertonia generally shows trouble moving her joints in the arms, legs or neck. Their range of motion👋 gets limited, and they fall often because they lose their balance. If a baby has severe hypertonia, he can't move the affected body part much because his joint freeze in place, which is called a contracture. Other reasons why your baby may stiffen their bodyThere are a few other possible medical reasons🏥 for a baby to stiffen their body. Other medical conditions related to brain damage, such as infantile spasms, cerebral palsy, seizures, and epilepsy can cause this symptom as well. Occasional muscle stiffening isn't something to worry about. But if you feel suspicious too often, you should contact a doctor for a check-up and start a diagnosis and treatment👩‍⚕️.