Importance of Perinatal and Postnatal Care for Mothers and Babies

Running Head: IMPORTANCE OF PERINATAL AND POSTNATAL CARE
Importance of Perinatal and Postnatal Care
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Author Note:

IMPORTANCE OF PERINATAL AND POSTNATAL CARE1
Introduction:
The perinatal period begins after completion of the 22 weeks which is approximately
154 days of gestation. There is a close link between the perinatal and the maternal health.
Perinatal mortality indicates the number of stillborn babies and death that occurs in the first
week of life. The World Health Organization (WHO) supports countries in delivering
evidence-based, integrated as well as inexpensive care for the mothers as well as their babies
which starts prior to conception and continues through the gestation phase, delivery of the
child as well as postpartum period (Benoit & Semenic, 2014) (Biro et al., 2013).
This is an article that deals with the case study based on the complex pregnancy
followed by a preterm birth. The baby boy Shay is a premature baby who exhibited low
Apgar score that gradually stabilized to 7 and suffered respiratory distress. A low Apgar
score indicates that the baby is unhealthy and requires medical aid. He had low birth weight
of 1.04kg. The mother suffered a high blood pressure all through her pregnancy and even
post-delivery. She also exhibited proteinuria during her pregnancy, headache, epigastric pain
and foot swelling. The mother showed symptoms of pre-eclampsia.
Discussion:
Risk factors that impact perinatal health
Perinatal health takes into account the health of mother as well as baby before, during
and after birth. Shanvi as described in the case study had several risk factors in her health that
impacts the perinatal health. The four identified risk factors in the case study includes
obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and perinatal depression.
In this essay descriptive explanation of two risk factors are considered. They are:
obesity and diabetes.

IMPORTANCE OF PERINATAL AND POSTNATAL CARE2
The provided case study also showed that the mother Shanvi exhibited gestational
diabetes. She also had a family history of the same. She is also having obesity. She exhibited
symptoms of pre-eclampsia and had to undergo LSCS on an emergency for the baby that lead
to preterm birth and low birth weight of Shay her new born son.
Obesity in the time of pregnancy can lead to serious health issues for the conceived
mother. It makes the mother prone to gestational diabetes, preeclampsia and sleep apnoea
(Biro et al., 2013). Gestational diabetes promotes caesarean delivery which is observed in
case of Shanvi both her deliveries were lower segment caesarean section (LSCS). Pre-
eclampsia is characterised by hypertension that occurs during pregnancy. This leads to
preterm birth which is observed in the case study where Shay had a preterm birth because of
the gestational diabetes that Shanvi, his mother was suffering. Obesity also promotes sleep
apnoea which leads to shortness of breath during sleep. Sleep apnoea during pregnancy
causes fatigue and promotes the elevated prbability of hypertension, preeclampsia, eclampsia,
heart as well as lung disorders (Forster et al., 2008). Obesity of the conceived mother can
affect the developing child as well. It causes stillbirth, heart defects and neural defects of the
new born. Obesity can cause a syndrome known as macrosomia where the new born has a
size larger than normal. And also it increases the probability of preterm birth in the mothers
which leads to early delivery of the baby due to medical emergency of the mother (Homer,
2016).
Shanvi, was suffering from type 2 diabetes. The condition of diabetes worsens in
pregnancy. Placenta provides nutrition and oxygen to the growing baby and also makes
hormones. The hormones include placental lactogen, estrgen and cortisol that inibits the
action of insulin thus promoting the level of glucose. Hence, glucose circulates in the
circulatory system of the mother and enhances the impact of diabetes (Chamberlain et al.,
2013). The gestational diabetes causes the symptom of large baby called as macrosomia

IMPORTANCE OF PERINATAL AND POSTNATAL CARE3
which promotes birth trauma in the mother and the baby and also causes shoulder dystocia in
the baby (Duong, Davis & Falhammar, 2015). Gestational diabetes can be linked to an
elevated risk of preterm birth. The reason of the premature birth of the baby may be due to
the damage of the placenta which links the baby to the mother and her circulatory system
since placental hormones can cause a rise in the blood sugar level that aggravates the
symptoms of gestational diabetes. This impacts the functioning of the placenta and also the
development of the baby inside it (Abell et al., 2017). Gestational diabetes also promotes the
risk of still birth. The baby born may also have a risk of low blood sugar level post delivery.
This is because the infant’s blood will have more amount of insulin to counter the elevated
glucose level in the maternal blood (Dahlen et al., 2013). If such a scenario is observed the
baby is administered insulin through channel IV. Diabetes can also promote preclampsia in
mother and respiratory distress in the infant (Nankervis et al., 2014) (Morrison, Lowe &
Collins, 2014).
Management of prematurity in NICU
It is observed that almost fifteen million neonates are born prematurely. The
complications from the premature birth is considered the major reason of child death of
babies below five years of age. Preterm birth has now become a global concern. In 2015 the
death rate due to preterm birth rose to 5 million (Abdel-Latif, Kecskés & Bajuk, 2013). The
individual who survive the premature birth face challenges with disability throughout lifetime
which includes disability of learning as well as hearing and visual challenges. Babies that are
born prior to the 37th week of pregnancy is considered to be premature and is at risk of
various health related complication.
Premature babies need special care to overcome morbidity and mortality. This is
because these new born are not completely equipped to deal with life on their own. They
have underdeveloped systems which include the lugs, digestive system, immune system as