HIGH-RISK PREGNANCY MANAGEMENT
Any pregnancy can be a challenging experience for a woman. Meanwhile, high risk pregnancy may be fraught with a potential threats to the health of both the mother and the baby. High risk pregnancy symptoms may be similar to the normal pregnancy and hard to differentiate. The range of high risk pregnancy services may seem rather long, but this is because a high risk pregnancy needs a greater level of attention and monitoring due to the increased risk of complications, as it scales up a baby’s chances for health and developmental problems at birth. More detailed information about the high risk pregnancy management and services is presented below.
You might be faced with challenges before, during or after delivery if you have a high-risk pregnancy. You and your baby might need special care or monitoring throughout the pregnancy.
A high-risk pregnancy is sometimes the result of a medical condition present before pregnancy. In other scenarios, it could be due to medical conditions that develop during the pregnancy for either the pregnant woman or baby. It is important to understand what causes a high-risk pregnancy and what you can do to take care of yourself and your baby.
A multidisciplinary team of specialists and clinical nurses will monitor and evaluate mothers and optimise fetal well-being. Trained obstetricians will be able to manage complications (if any) during pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
As high-risk pregnancies may have ups and downs, do your best to stay positive as you take steps to promote a healthy pregnancy.
HIGH RISK PREGNANCY SYMPTOMS
High risk pregnancy may not be easy to distinguish from a normal one in respect of symptoms. Meanwhile, the high risk pregnancy symptoms may last longer and be far more severe. If any of the below symptoms appear, a patient must contact her doctor immediately.
- Cramping and severe pain in the lower tummy
- Blurred vision or any other eye-related symptoms
- Severe and continuous headaches
- Pain and burning sensation when passing urine
- Vaginal bleeding of any intensity
- Frequent contractions
- Yeast-like discharge from vagina
HIGH RISK PREGNANCY SERVICES
You might consider various tests or procedures in addition to routine prenatal screening tests if you have a high-risk pregnancy. Depending on individual circumstances, your doctor might recommend:
- Specialized or targeted ultrasound: An imaging technique that uses high-frequency sound waves to create images of the foetus in the uterus. This ultrasound targets a suspected problem, such as abnormal development.
- Amniocentesis: A sample of the fluid that surrounds and protects a baby during pregnancy (amniotic fluid) is extracted from the uterus. Normally performed after week 15 of pregnancy. This test can identify certain genetic conditions and neural tube defects (serious abnormalities of the brain or spinal cord).
- Chronic villus sampling (CVS): A sample of cells is removed from the placenta. Normally performed between weeks 10 and 12 of pregnancy. This test can identify certain genetic conditions.
- Cordocentesis/Percutaneous umbilical blood sampling:A highly specialized prenatal test where a sample of fetal blood is collected from the umbilical cord. Normally done after week 18 of pregnancy. This test can identify chromosomal conditions, blood disorders and infections.
- Cervical length measurement: An ultrasound used to measure the length of your cervix at prenatal appointments to check if you’re at risk of pre-term labour.
- Lab tests: A swab of your vaginal secretions might be taken to check for a substance that acts like a glue between the fetal sac and the lining of the uterus (fetal fibronectin). The presence of fetal fibronectin might be a sign of pre-term labour.
- Biophysical profile: A prenatal test used to check on the baby’s well-being. It combines fetal heart rate monitoring and fetal ultrasound.