Why does a stillbirth occur?

Stillbirth is actually rare. Most expectant mothers will be particularly careful about their bodies to prevent any problems from occurring. They will also go for regular prenatal checkups. Stillbirth is a manifestation of a baby being born without vital signs. In fact, the baby has vital signs at the beginning, but due to various carelessness, it will become a stillbirth. This can be due to many reasons. So why does a stillbirth occur?

After 20 weeks of pregnancy, the death of the fetus in the uterus is called stillbirth, or intrauterine fetal death. The death of a fetus during childbirth is called stillbirth, which is also a type of fetal death. Since about half of stillbirths have no symptoms during pregnancy, most parents are completely unaware that they have lost their fetus.

  1. Common factors : ( 1) Severe fetal malformation: stillbirth or structural malformation caused by genetic, environmental or unknown factors.

(2) The pregnant woman’s high blood pressure causes the fetus to not get enough nutrients and oxygen.

(3) Hypertension can cause pregnancy convulsions, leading to the death of the pregnant woman and the fetus.

(4) If the placenta partially or completely detaches before delivery, the fetus may suffer from hypoxia due to excessive blood loss from the mother, which may endanger the lives of both the mother and the fetus.

(5) Limited fetal growth: A fetus that is too small or grows slowly faces a higher risk of asphyxia (lack of oxygen) or unknown factors, both before and during birth.

(6) Early rupture of membranes causes intrauterine infection.

(7) Thalassemia or rhesus factor disease.

(8) Undetected or poorly controlled gestational diabetes.

(9) Bacterial infections: Toxoplasmosis, group B streptococcus and German rubella are important causes of fetal death between 24 and 27 weeks.

  2. Other rare causes : ( 1) Dystocia.

(2) Umbilical cord factor.

(3) The infant is traumatized.

(4) Post-term pregnancy: pregnancy period exceeds 42 weeks.

Once the fetus is confirmed to be dead in the womb, induction of labor is usually performed. Most cases of fetal death can be delivered naturally through the vagina without the need for surgery. If the dead fetus remains in the uterus for too long without being treated, it will have adverse effects on the mother. Generally, if the fetus is stillborn for more than four weeks, the pregnant woman will develop complications such as blood coagulation and impaired blood function.

The process of induced labor for fetal death is similar to that of natural delivery, but because the fetus is smaller, the bleeding will be less than that of full-term delivery and recovery will be faster. If there are no other problems, you can consider getting pregnant again after 3 to 6 months of contraception. However, if you have abnormal conditions, such as high blood pressure or diabetes, you may need treatment before considering pregnancy.