As the world commemorated this year’s World Prematurity Day on 17 November with calls to raise awareness of premature births and provide preventive measures, a medic in Kericho has advised expectant mothers to know the risk factors and seek antenatal care services to minimize risks of giving birth to premature babies.
The term preterm is defined when a birth occurs before 37 weeks. A normal pregnancy lasts about 40 to 41weeks from the start of the last menstrual period to child birth.
In an interview with KNA a medical officer at Eldoret Annex Hospital Kericho, Dr. Dominic Rotich cited chronic diseases, the age of a mother, poor nutrition, smoking or using prohibited infections and history of a previous premature birth as the main risk factors that cause preterm births.
He explained that teenage girls who give birth when they are below the age of 16 years and women who deliver late when they are above 35 years of age have higher chances of delivering a preterm baby.
“Teenage girls below the ages of sixteen years’ are at a high risk of delivering premature babies because of the immaturity of their reproductive systems. For women above the age of 35 years the uterus is no longer strong and they may have other complications like fibroids setting in and this puts them at risk of delivering a premature baby.” said Dr. Rotich.
Chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension which not well controlled also put women at risk of delivering premature babies added Dr. Rotich.
“Certain conditions such as diabetes and hypertension which if not well controlled will put a n expectant mother at risk of delivering a premature baby. Hypertension complicates pregnancy as a mother risk developing eclampsia where a mother experiences seizures and preeclampsia where a mother has high levels of protein in urine that indicate kidney damage.
High blood glucose crossing from the mother to the baby will lead to the development of a big baby who will no longer be adequately accommodated in the uterus. Here the baby is found to have the ideal birth weight but is not yet fully developed thus leading to premature birth. Also, the expectant mother with diabetes is at risk of developing Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) and genital tract infections and this will cause a preterm birth.” noted Dr. Rotich.
Dr. Rotich advised pregnant mothers to avoid all forms of physical, mental and emotional stress and ensure they eat a balanced diet avoiding alcohol, smoking, raw animal products, sugary foods and drinks containing quinine to avoid early delivery of their baby.
The medic advised pregnant mothers to seek medical attention when they notice vaginal bleeding, a change of vaginal discharge which can be watery, fever, mild abdominal cramps or frequent contractions as these conditions may affect the developing fetus leading to complications of preterm labor which includes delivery of a preterm baby.
Babies who are born prematurely have low birth weight, breathing difficulties, underdeveloped organs and they also have a high risk of cerebral palsy, learning disabilities as well as behavioral problems.
“In the long run these preterm babies are susceptible to various long-term complications such as mental retardation, breathing problems because of underdeveloped lungs, infections, visual impairments, physical disabilities, and children who are born prematurely also have a higher risk to cerebral palsy. The mother develops postpartum depression which in turn affects the family and most of these babies will have to have a prolonged stay at New Born Units (NBUs) for specialized care.” noted Dr. Rotich.
The medic revealed that this month five first time expectant women are visiting the antenatal clinic (ANC) at the medical facility while in the same breath urging expectant mothers to seek regular prenatal care at their health facilities for monitoring of their unborn baby’s health as well as their own as this will lower the risk of early delivery.
“Not all mothers have the same antenatal visits and care but the standard ANC is four visits during the whole pregnancy. The first ANC contact visit ought to be between eight to 12 weeks of the pregnancy. A pregnancy has three trimesters and each trimester lasts between 2 and 14 weeks with a full-term pregnancy lasting around 40 weeks from the first-day of a woman’s last period.
As soon as a woman misses her periods and undergoes a pregnancy test to confirm she is pregnant they ought to start on her ANC. The first contact of a mother should be under the 12 weeks and this is where interventions will occur best to prevent preterm birth. During this intervention, the focus is on the mother and also on the unborn baby,” noted Dr. Rotich.
World Prematurity Day 2024 themed “Championing quality care for every preterm newborn,” emphasizes on the need for quality care for premature babies born in various regions in the world.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) more than 13 million babies are born prematurely every year, accounting for more than 10 percent of live births worldwide.
By Sarah Njagi
