Can I still wait for the birth if the placenta is aging?

The placenta is the place where a woman supplies nutrition to the baby during pregnancy. The baby will be born after ten months of pregnancy. During these ten months, the placenta will gradually mature and even age. Since the placenta is the place that provides nutrition to the baby, if the placenta ages, the nutrients in the placenta will also be affected to a certain extent. If the placenta is aging, can the expectant mother still give birth to a baby smoothly?

What impact does placental aging have on the fetus?

The placenta is an organ that grows from the embryonic membrane and the mother's endometrium during human pregnancy and exchanges substances between mother and child. If the placenta is aging, which means its function is reduced or weakened, it can easily cause fetal hypoxia, malnutrition, developmental delay, fetal distress, and even stillbirth, stillbirth, neonatal asphyxia, etc. The long-term consequence is fetal brain cell necrosis and poor development, ultimately resulting in a mentally retarded child.

The specific effects of placental aging on the fetus are as follows:

1. Increased intrauterine distress

The placenta is a transit station for nutrition between the mother and the fetus. Aging of the placenta can lead to degeneration of placental function, malnutrition, developmental delay and fetal distress.

2. High incidence of neonatal asphyxia

Even though the lungs of the perinatal fetus are mature, it does not have its own respiratory function in the intrauterine environment, and the exchange of oxygen also depends on the function of the placenta. Therefore, aging of the placental function can cause fetal hypoxia and increase the incidence of neonatal asphyxia.

3. Increased perinatal mortality

Fetal distress, hypoxia, malnutrition, and developmental delay are most likely to increase perinatal mortality.

4. Mentally retarded children

The fetus suffers from intrauterine hypoxia, brain cell necrosis and developmental stunting, eventually resulting in a mentally retarded child.

5. Increased proportion of macrosomia

Placental aging may also cause the fetus to be overweight, causing the pregnant mother to give birth to a giant baby. During the delivery process of a giant fetus, the chances of dystocia increase, and the chances of clavicle fracture, brachial plexus injury, intracranial hemorrhage, neonatal asphyxia and postpartum hemorrhage will all increase significantly.

What to do about placenta aging

The placenta is not graded in early pregnancy, but is generally divided into three grades: 1, 2, and 3 after the placenta matures in late pregnancy. At this time, grade 1 and grade 2 indicate that the placenta is mature. If it is grade 3, it indicates aging. In the late stage when birth is imminent, most of the time it is grade 2 or 3. Once the placenta ages, it gradually loses its function of nourishing the fetus. Therefore, it is generally recommended to perform a caesarean section as soon as possible to prevent the fetus from having abnormalities at any time.