Breanna Douglas

Research Paper
Mrs. Warneke
December 10th, 2015

Premature Birth
Twenty one year old Brianna Morse has recently had premature twins. The two girls were
born at twenty nine weeks. Avalee weighed 2lbs and 8 oz. Amelia weighed 3lbs and 2oz. Brianna
was originally due January 3rd, but was going to be induced on December 20th due to the fact
that there is more complications when having twins. When Avalee and Amelia were born they
only had minor breathing problems. They needed a cpap machine for 4-5 days, then spent a week
and two days in the NICU and then were transferred to intermediate special care unit until they
are discharged from the hospital.(Morse) Even though the United States is a developed country,
premature birth is still a big issue. Two solutions that can help solve this problem are better
prenatal care for the mothers and early detection of issues in hospitals.
During a pregnancy, mothers need lots prenatal care and need to focus on taking care of
themselves and the baby/babies. When having a premature, the bay has a higher chance of
having health problems that could last a short amount of time or could affect them the of the
lives. Short term effects include, breathing problems, heart problems, and Jaundice which is
where the babys eye and skin turn yellow, caused when the liver is not fully developed etc.
(Mayo Clinic Complications) Long term effects include vision problems, hearing
problems,and Cerebral Palsy etc. (Premature Babies) Studies have shown that babies are who
are born prematurely have a harder time completing tests, and have a smaller attention span
(Stifferlin).

Without getting early detections or going into the doctor right away, It may not detect
early problems. Not detecting these problems can cause bigger problems like premature birth and
not being prepared nor ready. Not getting early detection and not getting the care you need could
hurt you or the baby.
One solution in helping with premature birth is better prenatal care. In order to help
prevent premature birth, pregnant woman should stop smoking, avoid alcohol, get prenatal care
and seek medical attention as soon as you know that you are pregnant.(CDC) Doing these things
can help prevent premature birth but can also help with preventing long term and short term
effects in the childs life. When finding out youre pregnant make sure to always go to the doctor
to find out how far along you are, and to get an ultrasound in order to make sure your baby is
healthy. When going to the doctor, they will help suggest things that you can do to help make
your baby healthy and prevent premature birth. Taking prenatal vitamins is another big thing in
pregnancy it helps make you and the baby strong (Mayo Clinic Complications)
To help prevent premature birth, seeking medical attention right away is one of the most
important things you can do. getting medical help can determine any early signs of disease or
early signs of preterm labor. If people knew what signs to look for during their pregnancy for
premature birth include contractions every ten minutes or so, on a more serious note vaginal
discharge, pelvic pressure, abdominal cramps with or without diarrhea (Mayo Clinic
Symptoms) are signs to look for with premature birth. Many women use a progesterone
medication if they have had a previous preterm labor. There are drawbacks to this solution too,
some people do not know that they are pregnant; some can't afford prenatal care, and some just
dont know what steps to take when finding out they are pregnant.

Early detection, is another solution. Doctors can tell preterm labor by four common signs
that include inflammation, decidual hemorrhage, uterine over distention, and premature
activation normal physiological indicators of labor. When having a premature baby, they have a
Newborn INtensive Care Unit where the child spends most of their time until they can feed and
swallow on their own. Sometimes doctors can not detect it right away though which may affect
your baby and higher the risk for long term problems. When your child is in the NICU you can
do many things like kangaroo care to get close to your baby. Your baby also gets 24/7 medical
attention when needed even when youe not there. In the NICU you can hold and feed your child.
In the NICU you can get involved with the equipment they use in the NICU and even help bathe
your child and learn how to take care of them and take the information home with you when you
get to bring the baby home. (Premature Babies) There is two different types of screening that
can be done there is Chorionic Villus Sampling which is done during the first trimester anywhere
between 10-12 weeks this helps determine whether there is any chromosomal abnormalities but
does not detect neural tube defects. The other common screening is Amniocentesis which is
between the 15-20 week mark of your pregnancy and this helps determine the genetic
information about the unborn child.
Genetic Screening is still an important part when being pregnant. Some asks why it's
needed but some people don't enjoy surprises. (Dr. Greiner; Prenatal Genetic..) When knowing
this its easier to prepare yourself and your home if youre expecting a special needs child.
Preparing your home may include having the right equipment, having a ramp for a wheelchair
when they are old enough to sit in one, or just preparing yourself and deciding how things are
going to go in your household with other children if you have any other children or how things
are going to go with you and your partner.

Drawbacks of early detection is that genetic screenings can give false information and
not always be a 100% correct.When getting a screening it may not pick up the chromosomal
abnormality and your baby could be born with the disability, or it could work the opposite way
and tell you that your child has a chromosomal abnormality and there may be nothing wrong
(Nenenberg). Another drawback is that with early screening you can find out if your child has
any major disabilities you and your partner now have a new decision to decide on whether youre
going to keep the baby, abort the baby, or go through an adoption program and put the baby up
for adoption.
Even though both solutions help with premature birth, prenatal care is more important.
THe NICU is a major part when having a premature born child (The Newborn..). Taking good
care of yourself and going to the doctor as soon as possible to get the prenatal care you need
decreases the risk of having a premature baby. As soon as you find out youre pregnant you
should attempt to quit smoking and do not drink or take any non prescribed drugs (Mayo Clinic
Complications). If every woman had the chance to get the prenatal care they need and not have
to worry about medical insurance we could decrease the percentage of premature birth. With
both solutions being good and helpful there is drawbacks to each solution they can now easily be
solved with more advanced technology, and now everyone can get health insurance to help pay
for the prenatal care they need. Amelia Johnson got discharged on December 9th 2015, and is
now at home with her family and drinking a 100% from a bottle, as for Avalee she is still at the
local hospital receiving the care she needs and is expected to be out by Christmas or as soon as
she keep the bottle in her mouth, suck on the bottle and swallow the milk without having any
issues breathing (Morse). If you could prevent premature birth why wouldn't you?

Work Cited
Carlie Nenenberg. Prenatal Genetic Screening Tests: Benefits & Risks Livescience. Web. 18
Dec. 2014
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preterm Birth. CDC. Oct 28th 2015. Web. 29 Nov.
2015.
Long Term Health Effects of Premature Birth. March of Dimes. March of Dimes Foundation.
Oct. 2013. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
Mayo Clinic Staff. Complications Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and
Research, 1998-2015. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.

March of Dimes. Premature Babies March of Dimes. Oct. 2013. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
Mayo Clinic Staff. Symptoms. Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and
Research, 1998-2015. Web. 29 Nov. 20
Stifferlin Alexandria. Lasting Effects of Being Born too Early. Time. TIMEHealth, August 27th
2013. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
The Newborn Intensive Care Unit. March of Dimes. March of Dimes Foundation. Web. 29 Nov.
2015.

Morse, Brianna. Personal Interview. 10. Dec. 2015.