After birth and the first breath, the child begins to receive oxygen from the air. But, being in the womb, he cannot breathe on his own and receives everything he needs from the mother’s body through the placenta. If the mother lacks any elements, including oxygen, the baby will suffer from a lack of them. Oxygen starvation is called hypoxia.
Minor hypoxia, as a rule, does not affect the child’s body, but severe hypoxia is accompanied by necrosis in various organs and ischemia, which can lead to irreversible consequences. At different stages of pregnancy, oxygen starvation affects the condition of the fetus in different ways. In the early stages, hypoxia causes developmental abnormalities, slowing it down. In the later stages of gestation, a lack of oxygen leads to damage to the central nervous system, slows down growth and reduces the adaptive capacity of the newborn.
Fetal hypoxia is not an independent disease, but a consequence of pathological processes occurring in the placenta, the body of the mother and the fetus. Hypoxia can appear suddenly or develop over a long time. Acute hypoxia is more common during childbirth, chronic – during pregnancy.
Refusal of bad habits, frequent exposure to fresh air, food rich in iron, and constant monitoring by your doctor are an excellent prevention of hypoxia
Oxygen deficiency causes a rapid heartbeat in the fetus, and in a later stage – a slow one. Heart sounds are muffled. Meconium may appear in the amniotic fluid.
Mom herself can suspect something was wrong in the second half of pregnancy, when the baby’s movements are felt clearly. It is necessary to carefully monitor the frequency of perturbations. There must be at least 10 episodes per day. For example, the baby moves for 1-2 minutes – this should be counted as one episode, an hour later again a couple of minutes – this is the second episode, and so on. There is an opinion that increased frequency of movements and the so-called hiccups of a baby are symptoms of hypoxia, but doctors say that, on the contrary, a decrease in the number of movements or their absence is more indicative.
If a pathology is suspected, a woman is referred for cardiotocography (CTG), which is today an important component of a comprehensive assessment of the condition of the fetus. With the help of the sensor, the baby’s heartbeat will be recorded, and an experienced specialist will decode and determine exactly how the baby is feeling.
CTG is performed not only if hypoxia is suspected during pregnancy, but also as a routine procedure during childbirth.
You can also track the work of the heart and the state of blood supply in the placenta using Doppler ultrasound, which is performed on ultrasound equipment. A doctor who listens to the fetal heartbeat through the abdominal wall can also suspect that something is wrong. In addition, doctors take into account the findings of the ultrasound. An indirect evidence of hypoxia may be the pathology of the placenta – the discrepancy between its thickness and the gestational age, detachment or premature maturation. When such diagnoses are made, women are hospitalized in a hospital for prophylactic purposes.