The terms used for stillbirth or infant death in the womb or
death of the baby (fetus) in the womb or loss of the baby in the womb or
intrauterine ex fetus (mort fetus) are the same terms. The fact that the baby
is alive at the time of birth and dies after birth is a different situation, it
is not included in this group.
Stillbirth is a term used for babies who die in the womb
after the 20th gestational week and occurs in about 200 pregnancies. If fetus
death occurs in the womb of the mother before the 20th gestational week, it is
not called stillbirth or infant death in the womb, it is called abortion. If it
is not known how many weeks of pregnancy during death, then it is named
according to the baby's weight. Deaths over 500 grams are called stillbirths,
while those below 500 grams are called abortion.
More than 3 million stillbirths occur every year in the
world.
Causes of
stillbirth:
- Perinatal infections during pregnancy (Rubella, CMV, Toxo
etc.)
- Preeclampsia and high blood pressure
- Bleeding during pregnancy (placenta previa)
- Detachment placenta (separation of the baby's partner)
- Diabetes
- Mother's injury, accident, trauma
- Sepsis
- Twin to twin transfusion syndrome
- Cord accidents, cord compression or knotting
- Uterine anomalies (congenital abnormalities of the uterus)
- Blood incompatibility (Rh incompatibility)
- Hydrops fetalis (immune or non-immune)
- Cord sagging
- Problems with birth
- Congenital anomalies in the baby (such as congenital heart
diseases)
- Chromosomal (genetic) anomalies in the baby
- Developmental retardation
- Preterm birth and early watery discharge
Apart from these, there may be some other causes and
stillbirths with no cause.
Undisclosed
stillbirths: These are situations where there is no reason to explain the
death of the baby who died in the womb. About 20% of all stillbirths cannot be
the cause. There is no mother-related illness or infant-related anomaly or
other condition to explain stillbirth.
Risk
factors for stillbirth:
The risk of stillbirths is higher in pregnancies with the
following conditions.
- Maternal age (more than 35) or too young (adolescent
pregnancy)
- Multiparite
- Overweight of the mother (obesity)
- Twin and triplet (multiple) pregnancies
- Smoking of the mother
- Having had a still birth, a bad esthetic story
- Having high blood pressure, diabetes, goiter, kidney
diseases, SLE and other systemic diseases in the mother
- Having thrombophilia (coagulation disorders) in the mother
- Pregnancy cholestasis
- Thrombophilia
- IUGR, oligohydramnios, polyhydramnios
- Assisted reproductive techniques (ART)
- Overdue pregnancy
- Mother's drug use
In cases where the baby is found dead in the womb, it is
aimed to deliver the baby as soon as possible with a normal birth or cesarean.
Prolonged stay of the deceased baby in the womb may cause certain substances
(thromboplastin) to pass into the mother's blood and cause bleeding-clotting
disorder (DIC-Disseminated intravascular coagulation) in the mother.
As described above, death in the womb before 20 weeks is not
classified as stillbirth, and these fall into the miscarriage group. Therefore,
in this case, the inside of the uterus is evacuated through abortion.
-PLASENTA CALIFICATION
-PLACENTAL ABRUPTION
-PLASENTA PREVIA
-UTERIN INCARSERATION
