During pregnancy, mothers develop an organ called the placenta in their uterus. It provides oxygen and nutrients to babies as it grows inside their mother’s wombs. Usually, it is only attached to the walls of the uterus. However, a complication called placenta previa happens when the placenta inside the womb partially or fully covers a mother’s cervix. If you are currently a pregnant mother you might be wondering how to prevent placenta previa from happening.

What is Placenta Previa?

Placenta previa is a pregnancy problem that occurs when the placenta partially or fully covers the mother’s cervix. This is the gateway between the uterus and the vagina.

The cause for this complication is still unknown. But there are some factors that can contribute to your chances like the number of your past pregnancies and your age. This condition can usually be detected during pregnancy with frequent check-ups from your doctor.

It is important to know whether a mother has this or not early on. This is because placenta previa causes further complications for both the mother and the baby.

The most common problem is that it can cause extensive bleeding (hemorrhage) to the mother during delivery and even throughout her laboring period. When the mother has a placenta previa, the doctors typically opt for C-section delivery so that the mother can safely give birth to the baby.

For the infant, there’s a chance that they may experience some blood loss and other health risks especially if premature.

How to Prevent Placenta Previa?

Since the cause for this complication is still unknown, there’s still no clear way on how to prevent placenta previa. However, there are some things that mothers can do to at least lower the risks included in this condition. Here are just some of these things that you can do:

Avoiding any activity that can irritate the cervix

If you are diagnosed with placenta previa, you should always try and not to irritate your cervix. Any irritations which might cause the placenta to break. This includes staying away from any sexual penetration, orgasm, and even the use of tampons.

Regular check-ups

Going through frequent check-ups is always important for every pregnant mother, most especially if there’s a complication like a placenta previa detected early on. It’s important to regularly monitor how the baby is going inside the womb. It’s equally important to check the mother’s vital signs especially her blood pressure.

Possible blood transfusion

If the mother is already losing too much blood, a blood transfusion might be required to sustain the mother’s health and prevent any possible life-threatening situation.

Staying in the hospital

If the bleeding becomes severe during labor, it’s best to stay in the hospital for the time being, or even until the delivery. Again, this can be a very sensitive complication so close monitoring and having your doctor and medical staff near you is important.

What are the Possible Treatments for Placenta Previa?

The treatments for placenta previa may vary depending on the condition that the mother is in. For example, if it’s only light to moderate bleeding, the doctor would usually advise the mother to not engage in any sexual activities, doing extensive work, and even exercise.

If the mother starts bleeding heavily, then that is already a cause for concern, meaning that the mother should be brought to the hospital immediately. To avoid further loss of blood, the doctor might suggest delivering the baby through C-section as soon as possible.

Going for a vaginal delivery while having a placenta previa is very dangerous. Even if mothers do decide to go for one, there’s still a chance that the doctor would perform an emergency C-section delivery to save both the mother and the infant’s lives.

Key Takeaways

Knowing how to prevent a placenta previa and the available treatments for it are important for any pregnant mother. There are still clear known causes for this condition, but certain factors do affect the chances of a mother getting one.

So educating yourself all about possible pregnancy problems like placenta previa will definitely favor you especially if you are expecting a child. But of course, the best thing that you can do is to ask for your doctor’s advice. In the end, they are still the one who knows what’s best for you.

Learn more about Pregnancy Complications here.