Breech presentation of the fetus when combined with premature rupture of the amniotic sac surrounding the baby can lead to adverse birth outcomes, a team of researchers reveal.
Premature rupture of the amniotic sac surrounding the baby is one of the leading causes of preterm birth (40 percent). Any rupture of the amniotic sac before completing 37 weeks of gestational age is considered to be a premature rupture. It can lead to severe outcomes like infections, heavy bleeding, oxygen deprivation to the fetus and stillbirths.
Breech presentation is a position of a fetus in a longitudinal lie with buttocks or feet close to the cervix, unlike normal position of head closer to the birth canal. One out of 25 full-term births in the country are breech births, according to the American Pregnancy Association.
Lead investigator Jean Goodman and colleagues initiated to examine the additional risks posed when breech presentation of the fetus comes along with premature rupture of the amniotic sac.
Out of the 569 women who participated in the study, 458 had breech babies and 111 normal. All the participants were with a history of water break between 24 and 34 weeks of gestation.
Results showed women with a breach presentation having a low amniotic fluid (68 percent compared to 50 percent) and giving birth early (30.05 weeks compared to 31.52 weeks) compared to the other group.
Apart from these differences, they were found at higher risks of experiencing serious complications like fetus death in the womb and placental lining separating from uterus. Neonatal outcomes were also found worsening in this group with respiratory distress syndrome, a deadly intestinal condition- necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and neonatal death.
"Until now, there has been limited information available to guide management decisions in pregnancies affected by a premature rupture of the amniotic sac when the baby is breech. We know now that fetal position affects outcomes for the mother and baby when a woman's water breaks prematurely," Goodman, division director of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Loyola University Health System, said in a news release.
"This study provides valuable information for counseling and managing women with such high-risk pregnancies."
Findings of the study were presented at the 79th annual meeting of the Central Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in Chicago, recently.
