Pregnancy is a difficult period in a woman's life, because even small deviations and disorders in the development of a child can cause serious consequences in the future. Among the most dangerous pathologies, doctors distinguish fetal hypoxia. What it is? How to correctly and quickly identify the problem? Can hypoxia be cured? What are the consequences for a newborn? We will try to answer all these questions in our article.
What does that mean?
In medicine, fetal hypoxia is a syndrome that occurs due to oxygen starvation of a growing baby. The lack of oxygen negatively affects the tissues and organs of the embryo, slows down its development. And prolonged starvation can lead to serious consequences affecting all systems of the child's body. However, it is the central nervous system that suffers the most in this case.
Symptoms of fetal hypoxia can appear on differentstages of its development, so women need to conduct regular examinations throughout the entire period of pregnancy. In addition, in practice, there is also acute hypoxia, which manifests itself only in the process of childbirth, for example, due to the incorrect position of the child. There is also a chronic variation in the course of this pathology. However, it is treatable, which can reduce the likelihood of consequences to a minimum.
Hypoxia is not the rarest pathology. According to statistics, it is diagnosed in 11% of pregnant women.
Chronic hypoxia
As mentioned above, in practice, doctors divide this pathology into two types: acute and chronic fetal hypoxia. They differ in the nature of the course, treatment options, as well as possible consequences. Let's take a closer look at the chronic form first.
This type of pathology is usually diagnosed with prolonged, but moderate oxygen starvation, which does not threaten the life of the fetus. However, we cannot close our eyes to this problem. Due to the lack of oxygen, the embryo develops much more slowly than it should. His organs do not have time to form by the designated dates. The earlier this pathology has developed, the more it affects the he alth of the future newborn, especially if the brain has suffered due to oxygen starvation.
Chronic fetal hypoxia in the later stages (after 28 weeks) can lead to disturbances in the functioning of the central nervous system. The child will be smaller in size, have a lower body weight. Such newborns are not always ableproperly adapt to life in new conditions outside the placenta, so they will often get sick.
Acute hypoxia
Unlike the chronic form, acute fetal hypoxia does not appear during pregnancy, but during childbirth. As a rule, oxygen starvation in this case has a more pronounced form, therefore, without timely assistance, the child may die. Acute hypoxia most often occurs during protracted, when the baby's head is strongly compressed in the birth canal, or rapid labor.
This type of hypoxia can be determined by the rapid heartbeat of a newborn, which can reach 160 beats per minute. If the cause of the pathology is not eliminated in a timely manner, this can lead to asphyxia and further death of the child. In rare cases, an acute form of hypoxia can also develop during pregnancy - with a sharp detachment of the placenta or an unexpected uterine rupture.
What is the cause of acute hypoxia?
Thus, it is clear that hypoxia is a serious pathology that requires prompt treatment. But what provokes its appearance? Which women are at risk? Depending on the type of oxygen starvation, experts identify different causes.
So, acute fetal hypoxia during pregnancy can be caused by the following abnormalities:
- Low oxygen in the blood of a woman giving birth. As a rule, it appears due to improper breathing during childbirth or anesthesia.
- Lower blood pressure of a woman. Arisesit is due to similar reasons.
- Placental abruption. If she has moved more than half, then the chance of death of the child is greatly increased.
- Hypertonicity of the uterus of a woman giving birth, which can lead to rapid labor.
Pathologies that can cause chronic hypoxia
Oxygen starvation that occurs during fetal development is caused by completely different reasons. In many ways, they depend on the he alth of the mother. So, most often, chronic hypoxia is diagnosed in cases where the expectant mother suffers from diseases of the cardiovascular system. The risk group includes pregnant women with anemia, hypertension and heart disease. Pathologies of the kidneys and respiratory organs can also lead to symptoms of fetal hypoxia. Bad habits, alcoholism, unhe althy lifestyle, the presence of toxicosis also increase the likelihood of developing hypoxia.
In addition, it is believed that oxygen starvation can develop during multiple pregnancies and if a pregnant woman has sexually transmitted infections. It is diagnosed with polyhydramnios or oligohydramnios, eclampsia and fetal growth retardation.
Symptoms and signs of hypoxia
Hypoxia is a dangerous pathology, so it is extremely important to recognize a possible lack of oxygen in time. And if the acute version of this disease, as a rule, is detected already in the process of childbirth by qualified doctors and obstetricians, then the chronic one can be identified by a number of characteristic symptoms.
Signs of fetal hypoxia are mild, soit is practically impossible to independently understand that the fetus suffers from a lack of oxygen. Up to 14-18 weeks, oxygen starvation does not manifest itself in any way, so it can only be detected by chance during a general study. However, in the later stages, hypoxia can be suspected by the following symptoms:
- rapid fetal heart rate manifests itself with slight oxygen starvation, in later stages, on the contrary, it slows down a lot;
- the activity of the child in the womb also increases or decreases depending on the degree of development of the pathology - the more it affected the embryo, the less often the pregnant woman will notice the movements of the fetus;
- appearance of original feces (meconium) in the amniotic fluid.
Sometimes a woman's attending physician may also suspect hypoxia, if, for example, during an ultrasound scan, he notices signs of fetal growth retardation: insufficient size and weight for a specific period. In the early stages, oxygen starvation can also be suspected due to the poor he alth of the expectant mother, in particular, if the pregnant woman suffers from anemia.
How to determine fetal hypoxia?
If a mother-to-be notices reduced fetal activity, she should be sent for diagnosis without delay. There is a special technique that allows you to determine whether the child is really moving less than expected. In the later stages, a pregnant woman should count the number of periods of fetal activity from the early morning. Tremors usually last 1-2 minutes. There should be at least 10 of them per day.
Intrauterine fetal hypoxia is diagnosed after a series of examinations. Before making a diagnosis, the doctor must assess the general condition of the fetus. To begin with, auscultation is performed - this is listening to the baby's heart with a stethoscope. The doctor determines the frequency of contractions, sonority and rhythm, as well as the rhythm of the heart. The most modern analogue of such a diagnosis is cardiotocography, when an ultrasound device is installed on the pregnant woman's stomach, which automatically reads the data of the heart, eliminating the possibility of medical error.
If intrauterine fetal hypoxia is suspected, a woman is prescribed dopplerometry. It shows changes in the blood flow of a pregnant woman in the veins, arteries and vessels located next to the uterus, placenta and fetus. The deterioration of blood flow may indicate the development of oxygen starvation.
To diagnose hypoxia, fetal ECG is also performed, as well as maternal blood tests. If an increased concentration of certain enzymes or any oxidation products is found in the blood, then this also indicates the possible presence of a pathology.
Definition of acute hypoxia during childbirth
Acute fetal hypoxia can be diagnosed directly during childbirth. As a rule, first of all, doctors pay attention to the color of amniotic fluid. If they are cloudy, have a greenish tint, or contain obvious traces of meconium, then this means that the child has been experiencing a serious lack of oxygen for some time. If the outgoing waters are transparent, thenthe newborn was unlikely to suffer from hypoxia.
After giving birth, doctors may also notice signs of oxygen deprivation in the newborn. It is determined by the bluish color of the baby's skin, weak muscle tone, shortness of breath. When listening to the chest, wheezing can be heard, and the child sometimes does not cry at all. A sign of fetal hypoxia is also a violation of the heart rhythm and the absence of any reflexes in the newborn.
Treatment of acute hypoxia
Oxygen starvation during childbirth must be eliminated as soon as possible, otherwise the consequences of fetal hypoxia cannot be avoided. The acute phase is the most dangerous, as it develops rapidly and can be fatal. The baby, taking his first breath, swallows amniotic fluid and chokes on them. Therefore, doctors during childbirth carefully monitor the condition of both the child and the mother. Cardiac monitoring is often used to help professionals understand how serious the problem is. A newborn after birth requires urgent resuscitation. Otherwise, the consequences of fetal hypoxia for the child will be very serious.
Therapy for chronic hypoxia
When chronic hypoxia is detected, a pregnant woman is prescribed complex treatment. First of all, it is aimed at eliminating the cause of the lack of oxygen. Doctors are also trying to minimize the effects of fetal hypoxia on the baby and normalize blood flow to the placenta.
A pregnant woman must observebed rest to improve blood flow. Often she is even hospitalized. Therapy is aimed at reducing the contractile function of the uterus in order to exclude the possibility of miscarriage. To do this, appoint "No-shpu" or candles "Papaverine". The patient should regularly take oxygen cocktails. She is also being given blood-thinning drips so she can more easily reach the placenta.
If the complex treatment of fetal hypoxia has not brought visible results, then pregnant women in the later stages are sent for an emergency caesarean section to minimize the possible consequences of oxygen starvation.
What are the complications of hypoxia?
Oxygen starvation negatively affects the overall development of the embryo. Since the brain of the unborn child is primarily affected, then, as a rule, the main complications affect the central nervous system. If hypoxia has developed at an early stage of development, then the newborn may not be capable of independent living at all. These children are diagnosed with cerebral edema, heart defects and other diseases. Babies can suffer from seizures, epilepsy, kidney failure, enterocolitis. In children who suffered from hypoxia in the womb, developmental delays are often observed. Therefore, they are forced to regularly visit a psychologist and a neurologist. In especially severe cases, hypoxia leads to the death of the fetus in the womb.
Possible prevention of fetal hypoxia
Every woman should understand how dangerous this disease can be. Physicians should promptly notifypregnant women about all the symptoms and consequences of fetal hypoxia, so that the pregnant woman, at the first suspicion of a pathology, turns to a gynecologist, and does not self-medicate. To prevent oxygen starvation of the child of the expectant mother, it is recommended to be outdoors more often, eliminate bad habits and lead a he althy lifestyle. You must not forget about proper nutrition, taking vitamins and regular visits to your doctor.
drawing conclusions
Symptoms and consequences of fetal hypoxia should be known to every woman who decides to become a mother. Only competent prevention, timely detection and qualified treatment will help to minimize all possible complications. Do not underestimate a problem that can seriously affect not only the physical but also the mental he alth of your child.
