Why premature birth?

In the world, there are more than 13 million children born prematurely. Because of their premature birth, some of their organs are not fully developed. The environment they live in is different from that of the mother, including temperature, nutritional content, etc. In order to better avoid the phenomenon of premature birth, we need to find out the reasons for premature birth so as not to cause great harm to our baby's health.

What are the causes of premature birth?

1. Maternal factors

Generally, pregnant women with uterine malformations, such as bicornuate uterus, unicornuate uterus, didelphys, uterine septum and other congenital hypoplasia, are prone to premature birth. This is because the uterus is where the fetus grows, and if the muscles of the uterus cannot stretch well, premature birth is likely to occur. Congenital cervical dysplasia, or acquired cervical damage due to delivery, miscarriage or surgical operation, relaxation of the internal os of the cervix, and bulging of the amniotic sac into the cervical canal can all lead to premature rupture of membranes and premature birth. Sometimes, even if the uterus develops normally, it may be due to excessive expansion of the uterus during pregnancy, such as multiple pregnancy, polyhydramnios, etc., which leads to high uterine cavity pressure and excessive stretching of uterine muscles, which is also a common cause of premature birth. There are also intrauterine infections such as chorioamnionitis and premature rupture of membranes, which can lead to premature birth. The fetus lives in an environment with poor placental function and a poor uterine environment, which is prone to intrauterine growth retardation and intrauterine hypoxia. This situation has a worse prognosis than premature babies caused by other reasons.

2. Pregnancy complications

During pregnancy, if the mother suffers from an acute infectious disease, such as rubella, influenza, acute infectious hepatitis, acute pyelonephritis, acute cholecystitis, acute appendicitis, pregnancy-induced hypertension, heart disease, etc., these diseases can also easily lead to premature birth. In addition, the mother's endocrine disorders, such as progesterone or estrogen deficiency, severe hyperthyroidism, diabetes, etc.; pregnant women with a history of trauma and surgery may suffer from tissue hypoxia due to mental stress and high blood pressure, and insufficient oxygen supply to the uterus and placenta; pregnant women are malnourished, have severe anemia, especially protein deficiency and vitamin E and folic acid deficiency; placental abnormalities, and umbilical cord that is too thick, too short, torsion, or knotted, etc., these are all causes of premature birth.

3. Fetal factors

Twins and fetal malformations are also factors that increase the risk of premature birth.

4. Social factors

Premature birth is more likely to occur among people of low social status, without jobs and with low economic income. This is because these people engage in heavy physical labor, work long hours, are overworked, cannot undergo normal prenatal examinations, and have poor nutritional status. Premature birth is also prone to occur in modern urban mothers, who have more psychological and work pressures, frequent mood swings, and excessive mental stress. Some mothers are too underweight in order to lose weight, which can also easily lead to premature birth. Some women request a caesarean section in advance due to work reasons or fear of the pain of childbirth.

5. Environmental factors

Environmental pollution and noise can also increase the risk of premature birth.

6. Other factors

The premature birth rate is significantly higher among pregnant women under 20 years old or over 35 years old, especially those under 20 years old and pregnant women with short stature, who are at higher risk of premature birth. Those who have a history of miscarriage, especially late miscarriage, recurrent miscarriage, artificial abortion, induced abortion, or who become pregnant again less than one year after miscarriage, are most likely to have a premature birth. Because abortion causes varying degrees of damage to the cervix, it can lead to cervical insufficiency and increase the rate of premature birth. Pregnant women with bad personal living habits, such as smoking, drinking, picky eating, and frequent and intense sexual life in the late pregnancy, are prone to premature rupture of membranes, which is also a common cause of premature birth.