And amazingly, both had been given the same predicted delivery date - 4 April. So what are the chances of both giving birth on the same day? In the UK, where Chaney and Marshall live, a woman's estimated date of delivery is first calculated by using the date of her last period and adding days, or 40 weeks.
That is followed by an ultrasound scan where another estimate is made, based on the size of the foetus. If the two "due dates" differ by a week or more, the scan is taken as the more accurate measure.
The figure is higher when premature births and pregnancies with complications are not included, but only marginally 4. While it may be helpful for parents to get an idea of when their child will arrive, the main purpose of the due date is to "define a metric for the care" of the mother during pregnancy, says Prof Jason Gardosi of the Perinatal Institute.
The advice to the expectant mother, he says, is that the baby is likely to come any time between 37 weeks days and 42 weeks days , a period referred to as "term", when the baby has reached full maturity, Gardosi says. You may be tempted to ask your doctor for an early induction because of swollen ankles or an aching back, but that final month is critical to your baby's good health.
For starters, a compound in her lungs called surfactant, which enables her to breathe independently, continues to be produced in greater amounts during the last month of pregnancy and decreases her risk of developing breathing problems once she arrives. Her liver is still undergoing changes that will enable it to properly filter toxins, such as jaundice -causing bilirubin, out of her body.
Her skin is thickening and she is accumulating more body fat, which will help her to maintain her own body temperature after she's born. Brain development is still underway; at 35 weeks, for example, its volume is only about two thirds of what you'd expect at 39 to 40 weeks, says Dr.
Additionally, important brain and nerve connections are being made to help her suck, swallow, breathe, regulate her body temperature, and even sleep better once she's born. Slowly but surely the birth culture of "induction or C-section on demand" has changed. Now, most doctors have received the memo that unnecessary inductions are potentially dangerous for moms and babies. If there are solid, compelling medical reasons to induce or schedule a C-section, then, by all means, that's what those procedures are there for.
However, if the medical reason can wait until a baby is full term, mothers and babies both fare better. Another great thing about these guidelines is that it spells out that a woman isn't really "over due" when she goes past her due date a week or two. For a long time now, doctors have been fixed on that week mark as if a timer will go off and all hell's going to break loose if the baby isn't born lickety-split. Their concern is about babies growing too big for mom's pelvis, or a placenta growing too old to sustain a baby.
While those things do occasionally happen, they don't happen very often. Since post due date pregnancies put doctors on the defense legally speaking however, the birth culture pressed hard for women to accept medical interventions to push them into labor once the buzzer went off.
The thing is that prior to when all those crazy inductions took over the birth industry in the 80s and well into the s, women delivered safely a week or two past their due dates all the time and it was no big deal. Sure, they were crazy uncomfortable and frustrated, but nobody considered that there was anything wrong with them.
These new guidelines send the message that women and their doctors need to hear: So what if the baby's a little late? No biggie. He or she will come when really, truly ready to be born. Frankly, we think mom's body knows when that time is far better than anybody else.
Between and , there were fewer full-term births, and almost twice as many babies born at 37 and 38 weeks. One reason for this is that it became more common for women to be scheduled for a C-section or to have labor induced before their due date.
Some hospitals have taken recent steps to reduce unnecessary early deliveries, but too many births are still being scheduled for convenience. Carrying an infant the full 39 weeks has important health benefits for the baby and the mother. Babies induced or delivered by C-section before 39 weeks are more likely to have problems breathing and feeding, have severe jaundice, and need intensive care after birth.
They also have a higher chance of having cerebral palsy, which can affect movement, hearing, seeing, thinking, and learning. And, while the overall risk of infant death is low, it is higher for babies who are delivered before 39 weeks.
Women who carry their baby at least 39 weeks also have less postpartum depression. To prepare for birth, the cervix softens and thins. As this happens, the opening gets bigger, or dilates. If your body is not ready, your delivery is less likely to go smoothly.
0コメント