High Risk Pregnancy

High Risk Pregnancy

What Are The Risk Factors For A High-Risk Pregnancy ?

A high-risk pregnancy might pose challenges before, during or after delivery. If you have a high-risk pregnancy, you and your baby might need special monitoring or care throughout your pregnancy. Understand what causes a high-risk pregnancy, and what you can do to take care of yourself and your baby. Sometimes a high-risk pregnancy is the result of a medical condition present before pregnancy. In other cases, a medical condition that develops during pregnancy for either mom or baby causes a pregnancy to become high risk.

What Steps Can I Take To Promote A Healthy Pregnancy ?

Schedule a preconception appointment :- If you're thinking about becoming pregnant, consult your health care provider. He or she might counsel you to start taking a daily prenatal vitamin and reach a healthy weight before you become pregnant. If you have a medical condition, your treatment might need to be adjusted to prepare for pregnancy. Your health care provider might also discuss your risk of having a baby with a genetic condition.

Eat a healthy diet :- During pregnancy, you'll need more folic acid, calcium, iron and other essential nutrients. A daily prenatal vitamin can help fill any gaps. Consult your health care provider if you have special nutrition needs due to a health condition, such as diabetes.

Gain weight wisely :- Gaining the right amount of weight can support your baby's health — and make it easier to shed the extra pounds after delivery. Work with your health care provider to determine what's right for you.

Do I Need Special Tests ?

If you have a high-risk pregnancy, you might consider various tests or procedures in addition to routine prenatal screening tests. Depending on the circumstances, your health care provider might recommend:

Specialized or targeted ultrasound :- This type of fetal ultrasound — an imaging technique that uses high-frequency sound waves to produce images of a baby in the uterus — targets a suspected problem, such as abnormal development.

Amniocentesis :- During this procedure, a sample of the fluid that surrounds and protects a baby during pregnancy (amniotic fluid) is withdrawn from the uterus. Typically done after week 15 of pregnancy, amniocentesis can identify certain genetic conditions, as well as neural tube defects — serious abnormalities of the brain or spinal cord.

Cordocentesis :- This test, also known as percutaneous umbilical blood sampling, is a highly specialized prenatal test in which a fetal blood sample is removed from the umbilical cord. Typically done after week 18 of pregnancy, the test can identify chromosomal conditions, blood disorders and infections.