A human being is conceived and draws its first breath in less than a year. According to Lorna K. Fitzpatrick, MD, a board-certified pediatrician and vice president of medical affairs at Univera Healthcare, a full-term pregnancy is 280 days, or roughly 40 weeks from a woman’s last menstrual period. An infant is considered full term from 39 to 40 weeks and six days, or a week before, and a week after the 40-week mark.

Dr. Fitzpatrick says, “Each week of a pregnancy is crucial for the developing fetus, with the baby’s lungs and brain developing in the last weeks of the pregnancy. So, the closer to full-term a woman gives birth, the greater the likelihood that the child will be healthy. However, some pregnancies do not reach full term and children are born prematurely. Complications can occur when a child is born prematurely, and such infants may require specialized care, including the need to spend time in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). While certain causes of premature birth occur seemingly without reason, many may be linked to the mother’s health.”

November is Prematurity Awareness Month, and LuAnne Brown, executive director of Buffalo Prenatal Perinatal Network, Inc. (BPPN), and Dr. Fitzpatrick, outline some of the common causes of premature births to help navigate pregnancies to full term.

  • Infection: Infection or inflammation can lead to preterm birth. Any systemic infection may lead to a child being born prematurely, and this can include infections in the mouth (such as gum disease), vagina, uterus, and kidneys.
  • Low PAPP-A levels: Pregnancy Associated Plasma Protein-A (PAPP-A) is a hormone that is made by the placenta during pregnancy. Women with low PAPP-A levels may deliver prematurely or develop pre-eclampsia because the placenta is not working correctly.
  • Cervical issues: A short or insufficient cervix can lead to preterm birth, especially if labor symptoms are present.
  • Polyhydramnios: This is a condition in which there is extra amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus. It may sometimes lead to increased risk for a premature birth.
  • Stress: Chronic, high-level stress may bring on labor before it would otherwise begin.
  • Smoking: Nicotine in cigarettes and other tobacco products can cause blood vessels to constrict and inhibit blood flow and oxygen from reaching the fetus, leading to complications including preterm birth.
  • Medical emergency: Some doctors may suggest a medical preterm delivery if the mother has pre-eclampsia or another condition where the risk for waiting for full term would be a worse outcome than delivering the child early through a caesarian section.
  • Elective C-section: Some women choose to have C-sections before they reach full term. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development says that even preterm delivery at 37 or 38 weeks puts an infant at risk for poorer health outcomes, so elective caesarean deliveries early on are not recommended.

Premature delivery can occur for a number of reasons. For the health of the infant, every measure should be taken to ensure a full-term pregnancy. Learn more at BPPN at https://bppn.org, or by calling 716-884-6711.