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It is not a very pleasant subject to think about and much less to worry about, but it is necessary to know about all the risks and care that we can take. When we talk about the risks that the baby is still taking during pregnancy, this situation can become a little more complicated, because prevention is not always within our reach, as is the case of neonatal asphyxia.
The neonatal asphyxia is a major cause of death in babies soon after birth and can also leave serious sequelae whom she survives. But in order to understand exactly what it is about, it is necessary to understand some other terms to situate ourselves within this subject that is so complex.
What is Perinatal Asphyxia?
First, we must understand that the period called perinatal corresponds to the period between the 22 weeks of gestation of a baby up to his 7 days of life. Perinatal asphyxia usually occurs because of some problem in the mother’s nutritional supply to the baby during this period of pregnancy, which can cause this problem and make the delivery a little more delicate as well.
The neonatal period corresponds to the first 28 days of a child’s life. It is the period when they are most fragile and, therefore, 80% of baby deaths in the first year occur within that period. Neonatal asphyxia is also a consequence of the problems already mentioned and is a major cause for concern for both parents and doctors.
How Does Neonatal Asphyxia Occur?
When there is a problem of nutritional supply between the mother and the baby, the main organs affected are the lungs and the heart , but mainly the lungs. Increased respiratory rate and increased heart pressure are the main characteristics of the onset of perinatal asphyxia.
If the problem continues to occur, the next symptoms are respiratory arrest accompanied, this time, by a drop in heart rate. This irregularity in breathing is what makes neonatal asphyxiation so dangerous, since what happens at the time of delivery will be decisive for the condition of the baby in its first days of life.
Causes of Neonatal Asphyxia
We can say that the causes of neonatal asphyxia can occur both from the mother and the baby due to problems that occurred during pregnancy, such as the woman’s hypertension, diabetes , seizures, infections during childbirth, malformations, among other things.
In addition, problems during childbirth can also cause neonatal asphyxia, such as a rupture of the cord, for example. When we talk specifically about asphyxia in babies in the neonatal period, some of the main causes are:
- Anemia;
- Hemorrhages;
- Pulmonary immaturity;
- Metabolic Disorders.
How to Deal With the Problem After It Happens?
As we mentioned earlier, neonatal asphyxia is one of the main causes of infant death within this period, which can leave many families traumatized and afraid of trying to have another child again.
We must consider that despite this, death does not always occur and often the baby can leave without very serious sequelae, but, if this occurs, the most recommended is that the mother and father undergo psychological treatment to help overcome the trauma. and rethink life from that.
Despite being a shocking event for a person’s life, we cannot just give up, even though there is a period of mourning and overcoming what happened. We must also respect the pain of those who are experiencing this type of problem , without giving opinions or examples, just listening and letting time pass so that it can be overcome.
Problems like neonatal asphyxiation are unfortunately part of our reality, although many of us don’t even imagine that it can happen to us. And as we know that there are ways to prevent this type of problem from happening, it is necessary to always have a well-done medical follow-up , especially the factors that contribute to this problem to be part of your reality.
It is the kind of thing in life that we need to learn to deal with, even though it is often a hard and difficult reality. The truth is that we always need to think that there are ways to prevent and often to treat the consequences that this type of problem can leave and so we try to live in the best possible way.
See Also: Ferritin in Pregnancy – Symptoms and Treatments
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
