Complicated Pregnancy

Hello there. All three of my children I have had around 36 weeks or before. My oldest I had at 29 weeks. That was really scary but we were so very lucky. She did not need the oxygen like some of the other babies that ended up in NICU. She weighted 2lbs 13oz when she was born and had to remain in the NICU to grow and be fed via a tube into her stomach for 34 days. We got to bring her home at 4lbs 6oz. My second I had at 35 weeks and she weighted 6lbs 8oz and everything seemed fine with her. And my most recent he was 36 and 5days along when he came and he weighted 5lbs 11.9oz and all is good with him. I know that everyone is different and there are certain things to be worried over but things have advanced so much in the 8 years since I had my little girl I believe things should go alright for you. Good luck..

I'm sorry to say, I've never heard of this test. But, I had pre-eclampsia with my 1st child. I was put on bed rest at around 32 weeks. My son was born at 36 weeks. He weighed 5#10oz. Today, he is still just a little small for his age, but otherwise healthy. He came home within 2 days of birth & did great. Good luck & try to relax. (easier said than done.

Hi leAnna. A positive fetal fibronectin really doesn't mean that you will go into labor in the next 2 weeks. A positive fetal fibronection is like a maybe. I have seen many positives and most make it to term. Many things can cause a false positive, like the presence of semen or lubricant. The important thing is to pay attention to your body and if you are having contractions (pain, hard,tight belly) get to the hospital asap. They can monitor you and possibly give you medication (brethine, magnesium)to help stop the contractions. Good luck with everything. I hope this helped a little.

Doctors nowadays consider 35-36 weeks full term. There aren't many concerns with a baby born in those weeks. I consulted my friend who is his residency for OB/GYn when a friend of mine had a real preemie at 26 weeks. There are some concerns obviously but be glad that you are past 28 weeks. Also, from what he said now, the standards on preemies go by weight factors too. 4.5lbs or less I believe he said. I dunno if this will help at all.

I know exactly how you feel my youngest daughter was 6 weeks premature. The best thing for you to do is relax. Everything will be fine. You shouldn't stress out because stress is the worst thing for any pregnant mom.

I had pre term labor at 24 weeks that they were able to stop. I have never heard of the test you are talking about, but I did have my daughter at 38 weeks and everything was fine. I would just try to take it easy and stay hydrated and try not worry. I know easier said then done, but worrying will just make it worse.

I have never had that test done, but I did have a premature baby. My son who will turn 5 on October 15th was born at 26 weeks. He was a micropreemie, weighed 1 lb 10 oz and was 13 inches long. Now He's almost 5 and doing extremely well. No issues from his being so premature. I just wanted to let you know that babies born as early as my son was, do well in the long run. Hope your pregnancy goes well and that you make it to term

B.

One thing you need to do is take it easy. But my son was 6 weeks premature and he was my first it was very scary but luckly I got the shots to mature his lungs so he was only in the hospital for 2 weeks after birth he was 4lbs 5oz at birth. My daughter tried to come early and they did that test but it came back negative and I stayed on bed rest for 5 weeks and she came the day before I was do. Don't worry if it happens they have wonderful treatments they can do to help our child will be fine just rest a lot. Good luck

I don't really have any advice on this situation, but I do have a few questions. I am currently pregnant as well and for about the last two weeks I have been cramping really bad too, almost like contractions.....problem is, unlike you at 33 weeks, I am only 23 weeks. How long has your cramping been going on? Does it bother you every day? How excactly does it feel? Also, did your doctors do much else before conducting the fetal bibronectin test? My doctors have checked me vaginally on two occasions and I am not dilated or anything, so that is good, but I am still hurting bad. They also did an ultrasound to check the baby and she is fine. Finally, the only other thing they have done, is hook me up to a monitor to check for contractions, but they only kept me on there for 30 minutes and I wasn't cramping then, so I don't know if my cramping is contractions? My final question is, is this your first child? This is my second and I never had trouble like this with my first, so that is why I am so concerned. Any advice would be helpful, thanks!

Hi L.,

I went into labor at 32 weeks with my son, they put me in the hospital for several days and hooked me up to an IV of Mag/Sulfate to stop my labor. After going home I had to be on bed rest and take a pill (muscle relaxer)every 3 hours, even through the night to prevent my labor from starting. I finally ended up delivering at 36 weeks to a healthy, premature baby boy. While I was in the hospital they did give me a shot of I believe steriods to help develop the baby's lungs. I only thing I can caution you on is jaudice with a premature baby as their liver is not as developed as a full term baby so it is much more difficult for the baby to get the bilirubin level down to a normal level. Also use extreme caution if you start to bleed prior to delivery, even after an examine if you bleed a lot let the doctor know. The hospital I went to tried to send me home when I was bleeding pretty badly until the doctor checked me and thought the placenta was separating from my uterus and decided to deliver the baby. Best of luck, everything will be fine.

The fetal fibronectin test is not very accurate. Read about it here:
http://www.wdxcyber.com/npreg02.htm

In the mean time, try to figure out what is causing the premature labor. Are you dehydrated? Try drinking as close to a gallon of water a day as you can. Do you possibly have an infection? A yeast infection can be treated with an over the counter solution or my favorite is Yeast Arrest (can be bought at a health food store). Also, avoid sugar, eat lots of yogurt (low sugar kind) and take Lactobacillus Rhamnosus or Acidophillus. The thing about yeast is that it thrives on conditions also favorable for an overgrowth of Group B Strep. A GBS infection can also lead to preterm labor and erode the membrane to infect the baby.

If you think you might have a urinary tract infection, it can be treated with 3 days of Uva Ursi. Here's a web site that describes all the treatments:
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/ConsConditions/UrinaryTractInfe...

One more important thing is to make sure your diet contains at least 80 grams of protein per day. You really need to force yourself to eat even when you don't want to. Start out with a large breakfast and include a breakfast meat. Eating right includes whole wheat bread products, protein, dark green veggies, lots of water, your prenatal vitamin, etc. Dairy is not really needed, but you need to fill in the gaps with other calcium rich foods (broccoli, spinach, almonds, etc). Avoid foods that are highly processed, fast food, white sugar and white flour, artificial sweetners, soda, etc. You may want to also add Rainbow Light Good Morning Prenatals to your prenatal vitamin. You take them in the morning and avoid calcium that could bind with iron. Do more of the calcium in the evening and it will help you sleep.

You most likely can stop this process with the right plan of attack! Good luck!

Dear L.,
While Idid not have the test you were given, I did have a preemie. My first son was 34.5 weeks along when I had him. He was 4lbs 4oz. 17 7/8 inches long. He stayed in nicu for 2 days, nursery for 6, 8 total in hospital. They never knew why he came early. Tried to stop the contractions, were successful for a few hours, but they came back. My experience from there got worse because I ended up going cesarean section after 12 + hours of labor. We were told that 34 weeks is the fine gray line, they can come out perfectly fine little to no problems, or have many severe problems. i am sure you have been told the risks, and what to expect. I was not because it all happened so quickly. Well, sothe hospital staff said, when I had been leaking amniotic fluid for 4 days before hand. My son is 7.5 years old now, he is very healthy. Only thing we think remains from prematurity is sports asthma. He had tripled his birth weight at 4 months. He developed normally, taking the adjusted birth age he developed above average! His Dr.'s were impressed.
I know this is a tough thing to hear, and deal with, but you need to let the Dr.'s worry about it, too much worry and stress will not help your cause. You need to try to be calm and relaxed and take it easy to get to 35 weeks or more........tests are not 100% accurate, they just say "likely" "possibly" "maybe" "sometimes" and so on! Most of it is all based on what they have experienced or average occurances. Be abnormal in this case. Think positive. Good luck, Any other questions, drop me a line, I'll listen, talk, whatever you need.

I went into premature labor at 29 weeks with my son. I was having "cramping" pain which turned out to be labor pains. They gave me some medication to stop the labor and I went on bedrest. My son was born 3 days before he was due (today actually!). So I guess is what I'm trying to say is that it will be o.k., but I would never ignore any type of pain. I know that you don't want to be "that person" but trust me if I had ignored my pain who knows what would have happened! Good Luck and enjoy the last weeks of anticipation.

I have worked for an OB/GYN and many times the test comes back positive, and doesn't mean anything-and the opposite of that. Don't work so much-take a breath and enjoy what might be the end of your pregnancy.

I had my son at 35 weeks. The worst thing on me was continuing to work (I had to for $$$). Stress is the worst thing for you. RELAX, rest, be as healthy as possible. Stay in bed as much as possible. I can say dont worry, but that is easier said than done. Try to stay calm, and consult with your doctor when you are feeling uneasy. If you feel like something isnt right, go to the hospital or have your doctor check you ASAP. Dont put it off from fear. If you stay calm, baby will stay calm. I wish you and baby the best. Be optimistic!!!

I went into labor with my daughter at 29 weeks. The doctors were able to stop it. At 33 2/7 weeks they sent me home. They did the fetal fibronectin test and it came back negative. They did tell me that the tests can often give a false negative and a false positive. Well low and behold at 33 an 3/7 yes the next day, i was in the hospital giving birth. It is a very stressful time, but you have to try and not worry about it. The more stressed you are the better chance you have at going into labor early. My little girl only weighed 4 lbs 5 oz. She is almost 2, and you wouldn't be able to tell that she was premature. Keep your chin up! God bless!

L.,
I spent alot of my pregnancy in and out of the hospital due to this type of problem. I had the shots and all the bed rest and more hands of doctors up my private area than I care to mention. My test came back postive, and Yes, I went into labor early. It was stopped once, and it was very painful because the let me go to far with it. I was down to almost two minutes apart. I was put on medicine that I had to take that was supposed to stop contractions. They worked at fisrt, until I got to be about 33 weeks. Then just any movements at all by me made me go into labor pains. I was a fimilar face in the Labor and Delivery Department at the local hospital.
Fianlly the doctors decided the next time it srated just to let me go. I had a baby girl that is healthy and got all 10's on the test when she was born.
Just follow doctors orders. Just remember that babies born months early have made it. Just hang in there.

I haven't been through your situation but my friend was born at 28 weeks (and this was over 40 years ago) and turned out just fine. Don't stress too much. The most you can do is make sure you have a great doctor and hospital facillities. The best of luck to you!

Dear L. -
I had a severely complicated pregnancy with my son, Thomas. My husband was in the USMC at the time, and let's say that the doctors were less than sympathetic to my worry and pain. My son shut down my right kidney (he compressed my ureter, so my kidney couldn't drain). I went into premature labor the day after I was discharged from the hospital after having been there for three weeks - they were able to stop it, thank goodness. At 34 weeks' pregnant, I had been in the hospital seven weeks (I'd be out for a week, then get sick again and have to be admitted) and my kidney was failing. They did an amniocentesis test to see if my son's lungs were developed - surprisingly, it wasn't as scary or painful as I had imagined - and his lungs were sufficiently developed...they induced labor, and I delivered after 24 hours of hard labor. My son weighed 5lbs at birth, and only had to be in the NICU for 72hrs - and the last 24 were because he had a mild case of jaundice.
That was just over a year ago, and Tommy is 20lbs, healthy, walking, and developmentally normal. The only real health emergency we had was when he developed bronchitis at 4 weeks old, and had to be admitted to the hospital for a week. He's been fine since...
I know this is so scary for you...my husband and I tried for over a year to get pregnant, and when a pregnancy becomes complicated, nothing can keep you from being stressed out. Have the doctors done an amnio to see if your baby's lungs are developed enough to breathe on his own? They may give you an anti-labor drug (I was on terbutaline, the side effects were horrid but worth it if it kept my contractions at bay) and if the baby's lungs aren't developed enough, they'll give you a drug to speed up development. My advice is make sure that you completely understand everything the doctors are doing for you...ask any question you want answered. A 34-week preemie may be teensie, but mine was a strong fighter, and we were home in a week after the birth (I had to stay for an IV round of antibiotics for my kidney and nephrostomy tube infection).
If you have any questions at all, I promise that I will try to answer them to the best of my knowledge and experiences.
Sincerely,
M. B.

I was put on bedrest for 5.5 weeks before my son was born 4 weeks early. I too had 2 injections of steroids to help his lung development and was put on oral terbutaline (sp?) to stop the contractions. I also tried to drink more. He turned out just fine. Keep your chin up.

I have not had this done but I did have two babies premature. My daughter who is 7 years old was born at 33 weeks (4 lbs.-9 ozs.) and she is the smartest kid in her class. My son who is 2 years old was born at 31 weeks ()3 lbs.-15 ozs.) and is also extremely smart. They had no major health issues when born but had to stay in the hospital until they could drink a 2 oz bottle (which was 1 week for my daughter and 2-1/2 weeks for my son). Don't be nervous because if the doctor knows you are going to deliver premature, they can give you steroid shots to help develop the lungs. Best of luck.

Hi L.

I went into labor at 6 months. My doc stopped it by putting me on Breathine. I was taken off at 37 weeks and had my son a week later. I'm not sure if they stil use that because my son is 12 yrs old now. Try not to get stressed over it. Your doctor will take good care of you! It's not good for you or baby and will probably make you go into labor sooner being so worried about it! Just take it easy and good luck! Let us know how you are doing! This should be exciting,..not scary!

I had the fetal fibronectin test done every two weeks from 28 weeks until around 35 weeks(I ended up delivering at 37w2d). Mine was always negative. But I have heard of MANY women who got a positive result and still did not go into labor. In fact, I know a woman who got a positive result at 30 weeks and actually had to be induced at 40 weeks! Even if you do go into labor in the next few weeks, the baby should be just fine. My doctor told me that, at 34 weeks, about 1/2 of babies need minimal time in the NICU and 1/2 go home right away. Any complications at that point are generally minimal. Good luck to you!

I've never had the test but i've had premature baby's. My 1st one was 2 months early and she was 4 pounds 5 ounces. And my 2nd was 4 weeks and she was 7 pounds 6.1 ounces. Your Dr. should be able to tell you approx. what the baby's weight will be. If you have any other questions i'd be happy to help if i can. My baby's are now 18 and 12 yrs old. My labor was stopped with both and they came any way. They didn't want to stay in there any more.