Premature rupture of amniotic fluid: causes, doctor's tactics

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Pregnancy is one of the most important and responsible periods in the life of every woman. Its most prosperous outcome is the birth of a he althy and full-term baby. Unfortunately, not everyone goes as smoothly as we would like. Sometimes the bearing of a long-awaited baby ends with premature rupture of amniotic fluid.

What is this?

In medical practice, there are two such concepts as timely and untimely discharge of amniotic fluid. The second name means rupture of the membrane of the bladder until the moment when the fetus can be called full-term, namely, up to 37 weeks of pregnancy. This phenomenon can occur in an artificial and natural way:

• Natural premature rupture of amniotic fluid is when a patient goes into labor early.
• In the artificial method, doctors pierce the bladder ifthere are strong indications to induce labor when there is a direct threat to the life of the baby or mother.

Water can also drain completely, when all of the fluid in the bladder comes out at one time, or gradually over several hours.

How to understand that the waters break?

A young girl who is pregnant for the first time may not realize that she has had a premature rupture of amniotic fluid. Diagnosis and conclusion of this phenomenon can only be done by an experienced specialist. In total, there are several symptoms that should immediately call an ambulance:

• A large amount of fluid leaked from the vagina at one time. You should also be alert for frequent urination (more than 10 times in one hour).
• In addition to the clear liquid, blood stains can also be seen.
• The belly sank down and seemed to become much smaller.
• The fetus in the womb has ceased to make itself felt.
• There were pains in the lower abdomen, radiating to the back and side. They are not permanent.

After 30 weeks of pregnancy, the expectant mother should be especially attentive to her body and consult a gynecologist if something confuses her.

Two manifestations of this phenomenon

Medical professionals often distinguish two such concepts as premature and early rupture of amniotic fluid. How are they different?

• You can talk about early effusion when the patient feels severe pain in the lower abdomen, her cervix began to open, and only after these signs did fluid leak out or an artificial puncture of the bladder.
• Premature outpouring is a process that proceeds in exactly the opposite order.

In addition to premature and early rupture of amniotic fluid, there is such a thing as a lateral rupture of the bladder. This can only happen naturally. This means that somewhere on the side of the bubble a small hole has formed, through which water flows partially.

Why did this happen?

The girl who so reverently and affectionately bore her long-awaited baby will undoubtedly ask the most important question about why premature rupture of amniotic fluid occurs. In total, there are several main reasons:

• Very large fruit or high water. The mother's body is no longer able to cope with such a huge load, because of which it begins to prepare for labor.
• Premature rupture of amniotic fluid is a natural phenomenon when a woman is preparing to become a mother of more than two babies at once. Doctors say that this is a normal reaction of the body.
• Often the cause of this disorder is the pathology of the mother's organs, for example, she has an irregular shape of the uterus, a too short or long neck, poor blood circulation and insufficient supply to the placenta.
• This can also happen after the expectant mother has suffered an infectious or viral disease. It negatively affected the course of pregnancy. Because of this, the bladder became inflamed and burst.
• Absolutely any abdominal injury can cause such a negative moment if a woman falls, hits or lifts a heavy object.
• Very often the culprit in this situation is the excessive intervention of doctors.
• Sometimes the patient herself becomes the culprit of her condition. The rupture can occur due to excessive smoking, alcohol consumption, poor hygiene, constant stress and intense physical activity.

Premature rupture of amniotic fluid during premature pregnancy can occur between 22 and 37 weeks, it is during this period that doctors recommend that women be careful about their he alth in order to avoid unpleasant situations.

When do doctors decide to pierce the bladder?

It is worth talking separately about those situations when doctors decide to provoke an untimely rupture of amniotic fluid. Doctors' tactics usually become such if:

• A woman complains of sharp pains in her lower abdomen.
• She has a temperature of over 38 degrees for a long time.
• There was a profuse hemorrhage, most often this indicates placental abruption.
• During pregnancy, there is a strong Rh-conflict.
• Ifthe baby has taken the wrong position in the womb, it is better to induce labor earlier, until he has reached a large size.
• If the placenta is low.

All of the above points are a direct threat to the life of the mother and her child. Accordingly, in order to hope for a successful outcome, doctors decide to induce labor before the due date. With the help of a special metal hook, the bladder is pierced, which causes premature outflow of amniotic fluid. This procedure is completely painless as there are no nerve endings in the bladder.

Inspection at admission to hospital

As soon as a girl suspects that a large amount of water has come out of her vagina, she should immediately consult a doctor. He should make the following diagnostics:

• Register a call, accepting all necessary documents from the patient, including an application for medical assistance.
• Take a medical history by listening and writing down all the complaints of the pregnant woman.
• Do a gyno exam on the chair.
• Take all necessary tests, measure temperature and pressure.
• Ultrasound is mandatory, it is this diagnosis that allows you to assess the overall picture of the condition of the fetus in the womb.

Based on the study, the specialist decides on his further actions. The expectant mother must agree with him, having learned the complexity of the situation. Otherwise, she may harm her own he alth and the baby.

Severalpossible solutions

It is worth talking separately about what way out of the situation medical specialists can offer when they figured out the cause of premature rupture of amniotic fluid.

• If there is a partial leakage, then they try to keep the pregnancy at least until the 37th week so that the baby continues to fully develop. But in this case, the patient must be under constant control. She will be prescribed appropriate treatment: droppers, suppositories and tablets.
• Invocation of labor if there is a direct threat to the life of the mother or fetus. In this case, the natural process of the birth of a child takes place. A premature baby will be in specialized conditions (pressure chamber) and continue to develop in them under the supervision of doctors. The risk to the mother is usually minimal in this case.

Fortunately, due to the frequent occurrence of such situations, obstetricians have a lot of experience and know what measures to take, so in most cases they manage to save patients.

Possible consequences

As mentioned earlier, if a woman has a ruptured bladder, then she must call an ambulance without fail. Otherwise, several unfavorable moments may appear:

• Hypoxia. It is caused by the fact that for a long time the child does not receive enough oxygen. Physicians usually take actionwho can save the baby.
• Due to insufficient fluid and air, the baby dies right in the womb of a woman.
• The lining of the uterus will become very inflamed, and then a long treatment will be required.
• Weak labor activity will appear, due to which this process will drag on for a long time, more than 8 hours.
• Death of a patient.

It is worth noting that the discharge of water is a very dangerous process, after which one cannot remain without medical care, since the outcome can be the most unfavorable.

Preventive measures

Every woman who wants to give birth to a he althy baby is concerned about how to avoid premature rupture of amniotic fluid. There are several preventive measures. If you follow them, the risk of such a phenomenon is several times reduced:

1. It is recommended to consciously approach the family planning process: do not have abortions, do not have multiple sexual partners, avoid diseases of the genital organs.
2. Before pregnancy, partners must undergo a thorough examination, in particular to exclude Rh conflict.
3. Constantly see a doctor during pregnancy, take the necessary tests and undergo research, which will help prevent possible complications in the early stages.
4. Keep a he althy lifestyle three months before conception and the whole process of bearing a baby: do not smoke, do not drink alcohol, eat right, spend more time in the fresh air and avoid stressfulsituations.
5. Do not lift heavy.

However, there is no guarantee that this phenomenon will be completely avoided, in some cases it occurs due to the individual characteristics of the organism.

When there is nothing to worry about?

In some cases, this phenomenon is absolutely natural. There are a number of situations where you should not worry about this:

• If premature rupture of amniotic fluid occurs during a full-term pregnancy, that is, between 38 and 42 weeks.
• In the absence of other symptoms: pain, bleeding, fever, abruption or low location of the placenta.
• The waters receded a little.

In all of the above cases, you should consult a doctor, a specialist will take adequate measures, and the way out of the situation will be favorable for everyone.

About Integrity

As it turned out, the waters are breaking due to the violation of the integrity of the bubble. Separately, it is worth talking about this. After conception, the embryo is formed in the uterus, a fetal bladder forms around it. It is he who is a favorable environment in which the baby will develop within 9 months. If its integrity is violated, oxygen ceases to flow into the bladder, blood circulation and gas exchange suffer. Accordingly, the child at this moment is in danger. Therefore, it is very important that he be born as early as possible.

Easy test

You can also find out that water is leaking at home. To do this, you need to buy a test in a pharmacy. An indicator should be placed in a test tube with liquid, if the famous two stripes appear on it after a few seconds, then you can collect things, call an ambulance and go to the delivery room.

The period of pregnancy is very reverent, important and responsible. During it, a new life is formed. Every young mother should treat her body with the utmost care during this period, listen to doctors and take all necessary precautions. Only in this case, you can avoid adverse consequences and become the happiest mother of a he althy baby.