A premature birth is a birth that takes place more than three weeks before the baby is due. In other words, a premature baby is one who is born too early, before 37 weeks. Normally, a pregnancy usually lasts about 40 weeks.
It is indeed a sad occurrence to have to witness the death of a baby that you carried and nurtured for months, you have come to love the feel of it and you endured the morning sickness, swollen legs and pains all over your body, just so that you could carry your joy bundle soon.
It, therefore, comes as a great shock to know that all your effort has been in vain after your child fails to live, so sad. Now it is important to know why prematurely born children in Nigeria rarely ever survive so that we can find a lasting solution to this problem that brings sorrowful tears to the eyes of some Mamalettes.
Depending on how early a baby is born, he or she may be:
- Late preterm, born between 34 and 36 weeks of pregnancy
- Moderately preterm, born between 32 and 34 weeks of pregnancy
- Very preterm, born at less than 32 weeks of pregnancy
- Extremely preterm, born at or before 25 weeks of pregnancy
However, most premature births occur in the late preterm stage. More than one percent of babies in this country are born this early, but these babies have the most complications.
Most of these babies are born at an extremely low birth weight (less than 2 pounds, 3 ounces).
Almost all require treatment with oxygen, surfactant, and mechanical assistance to help them breathe and if you give birth to your child in a hospital where all this are available then there's a high probability that the baby may survive.
These babies are too immature to suck, swallow, and breathe at the same time, so they must be fed through a vein (intravenously) until they develop these skills.
They often can't yet cry (or you can't hear them due to the tube in their throat), and they sleep most of the day. These tiny babies have little muscle tone, and most move very little.
Babies born at this time look very different than full-term babies. Their skin is wrinkled and reddish-purple in color and is so thin that you can see the blood vessels underneath.
Also, their face and body are covered in soft hair called lanugo. Because these babies haven't had time to put on fat, they appear very thin. Most likely, their eyes are closed and they have no eyelashes.
The chance of a premature baby surviving outside of the mother’s womb is influenced by a number of factors but mostly it depends on the degree of maturity of the baby's organs because this affects;
- Whether the premature baby can breath
- Whether the premature baby's skin can hold in vital fluids
- Whether the premature babies brain can handle medical treatment and the early sensory stimulation
These babies are at high risk for one or more medical complications. However, most babies born after about 26 weeks' gestation do survive to one year (about 80 percent of those born at 26 weeks and about 90 percent of those born at 27 weeks), although they may have to stay for much longer in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Globally, preterm birth accounts for over 9.5% of all births. This means that over 13 million babies are born too soon every year. The earlier in pregnancy a baby is born, the more likely he is to have health problems.
Most premature babies have to spend time in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (also called NICU). This is the part of a hospital that takes care of sick newborns.
New babies born very prematurely are more likely to survive today than ever before that is if adequate measures are taken and they are given advanced medical care.
Mamalettes do know that you are more likely to experience premature labour or premature birth if:
You've had premature labour or delivered a premature baby before.
You're carrying more than one baby.
Your mother used the medication diethylstilboestrol (DES) while she was pregnant with you.
You have an abnormally shaped uterus or an abnormal cervix.
You've had a cone biopsy of your cervix.
You're younger than 17 or older than 35.
You became pregnant while using an IUD, and the IUD was left in place during pregnancy.
You were significantly underweight when you became pregnant.
You smoke or use illegal drugs.
You've had second-trimester miscarriages during previous pregnancies, or you've had three or more elective abortions.
You have pre- eclampsia, kidney disease, heart disease, diabetes, an infection or other medical condition.
You're not receiving antenatal care from a qualified healthcare provider.
You have a cervical infection, such as group B streptococci, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, syphilis, trichomoniasis or Gardnerella.
Your job involves extremely strenuous, physical work.
Therefore, pregnant women are advised to avoid anything that might endanger their baby and cause them to go into preterm labour.
Although there have been many advances in caring for premature babies, there has been little improvement in solving Nigeria's problem of premature labour causing mortality death.
Also, although analyses of recent trends show that the country is making progress in cutting down infant mortality rates, the pace still remains too slow.This is because medical science doesn't completely understand why some women go into labour or break their waters too early.
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