Every year thousands of children worldwide are born prematurely. One of the five is considered to be highly premature births preterm - at less than seven and a half months. Despite the fact that medicine has made significant progress in supporting these children, parents should still take precautions to make their child feel good.

Usually, a child is born in the 39th week of pregnancy. If we talk about premature birth Premature birth - Recognize the signals of the body in time , It is about 37 weeks, a strong degree of prematurity - up to 33 weeks. About 7% of children are born well before the deadline, and this figure continues to grow, in particular, it grows with the number of multiple pregnancies.

Several reasons

The causes of preterm birth much. Among them: the obstetric factors (multiple pregnancy, placenta previa, placental abruption, intrauterine growth retardation, and so on), the mother's illness (strep infection, listeriosis, diabetes Diabetes , Toxemia, etc.), the problem of the fetus (chromosomal abnormalities), socioeconomic factors (maternal age (18 years and older than 35 years)).

Since 1985, the number of multiple births has increased dramatically due to the growth of assisted reproductive technologies. In addition, the percentage of pregnancies in women over 35 years has increased from 6 to 14%.

Characteristics of preterm infants

Premature baby all the basic functions of the organism are not developed to the end.

The respiratory system is still immature, so is it requires very careful monitoring. Lung immaturity is reflected in the absence of important substances in the lung surfactant. Instillation of artificial surfactant produced a revolution in the treatment of hyaline membrane disease, and if there is the risk of delivery before 33 weeks need injections of corticosteroids mother and putting it into the compartment with the possibility of neonatal resuscitation.

Liver premature infant is also immature, which explains the high risk of jaundice. Immature and digestive system: premature babies need to be fed through a tube in the stomach or the duodenum, as he is unable to breastfeed, does not have the sucking or swallowing reflex.

The immune system is underdeveloped, which explains the frequency and severity of infections in preterm infants, and therefore especially important to protect them from contact with the outside world.

Thermoregulatory system is also underdeveloped: these children are very sensitive to cold and heat. Therefore, they must be placed in an incubator at a temperature of about 34 ° -35 ° C. The atmosphere in an incubator with humidity should be 80%. Children may be taken out of the incubator, when their weight to reach 2 kg. Parents give the baby when he will weigh about 2300 g if its feeding behavior allows it.

Fragile Children

A premature baby - is stressful for him and for his mother. Staying in an incubator, intubation and other medical procedures - sometimes it is very hard to bear. But can you trust the doctors from the first minutes of life, because it will take care of it the best way. Take all necessary precautions during the first months of life and regularly watching him, you can prevent the risk of serious diseases.

Health problems mainly occur in children who are born very premature. In the first months of life, respiratory infections are a major problem of these children. In 5-10% of the cases within the first two years of life can occur even slight paralysis. In 1% of cases - hearing loss, and a quarter to a half of the premature babies and then find eye problems (strabismus, amblyopia). All of them can be corrected by appropriate corrective devices.

There may be cognitive and behavioral disorders, they appear about two to three years (attention deficit disorder, memory impairment, hyperactivity). But again, early detection will allow to adjust the disorder, so it is important to time to see a specialist.

General Precautions

A premature baby in the first months of life is much more sensitive than other children. And when his parents sent him home, they should take precautions. Firstly, pre-need to talk to your doctor about these measures and be sure to find a doctor with whom you can be contacted quickly in the event of complications and for any questions.

It is necessary to prepare the room for the baby's temperature should be about 19 ° C, do not allow pets in it for some time. Be sure to wash your hands before and after changing a diaper and change clothes the child, and before each feeding. Consult your doctor in case of gastroenteritis, bronchitis, gastroesophageal reflux Reflux: the failure of the esophagus   and other digestive problems or mild.

Respiratory problems in winter

In the first months of life, a premature baby can be re-hospitalized. This is often the case with children less than 2, 5 kg at birth (one third admitted to the hospital again). The most common cause of hospitalization are respiratory problems, and this has a logical explanation.

If the baby is born too early, his lungs are not yet fully mature, and after the birth of another for quite some time, they remain vulnerable to various diseases. Danger to light: common winter infection, particularly virus bronchiolitis. Therefore, for premature babies is important to avoid contact with other people and collective care, contact with people who have respiratory infections. If the child was born in the autumn-winter period, try to avoid frequent occurrence in public places, including public transport.

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