Download Losing a Baby

Losing a Baby
• Miscarriage: before 20 weeks
• Stillbirth: after 20 weeks
Birth Defects
• Serious problems that threaten health or ability
to live
• Some mild some lifelong disabilties
• 3 of every 100 children born in U.S have a
birth defect
• Not all are apparent at birth
Environmental
• First few weeks baby depends on mother for
nourishment and oxygen.
• Balanced diet
• Disease/infection of mother
• Harmful substances
• Medicines
• Exposure to hazards
Hereditary
• 5-6 recessive genes are imperfect in person
• Single copy will have no effect but both
parents may pass on recessive gene
• Chromosome errors: could have too few or too
many
• Down syndrome: one child in 800 births
Prenatal Tests
• Ultrasound: sound waves to make video
image. Skeletal/organ defects detected
• Amniocentesis: withdrawal sample of amniotic
fluid using needle. 1 in every 200 women
have a miscarriage
• Chorionic villi sampling: small amounts of
tissue from membrane. Small tube entered
through vagina into uterus, tissue sampled.
Very risky