August 4, 2010
H
J |.Iorttanò (Dhseruer
ealth matters ;
Take
Your Healt
Delivering After
Your Due Date
by
D r . R ichard N. W aldman
The due date is one of the most
important dates on an expectant
mother’s calendar. It gives women
an idea of when their babies will
come and a timeline to prepare for
the arri val. B ut as many mothers can
tell you, the due date is an estimate,
not a definite, and can be hard to
predict.
Doctors calculate your due date
by determ ining the first day of
your last m enstrual period and
adding 280 days (40 w eeks)— the
length of an average pregnancy—
to that date. The due date is usu­
ally set early on in pregnancy and
an ultrasound exam may be used
to help confirm the gestational
age of the fetus. However, only
five percent o f babies are born on
their due date, with many women
giving birth as m uch as three
weeks before or two weeks later.
If a woman has not delivered at or
after the 42nd week, the pregnancy
is considered post-term. Roughly
10 percent of pregnancies are post­
term, which can up the chance of
health problems for the woman and
her fetus. The placenta may not
function as wel 1 as it did earlier in the
pregnancy, the umbilical cord may
become pinched, and the amount of
amniotic fluid in the amniotic sac
may begin to decrease. The risk of
cesarean delivery also doubles in
women who are beyond their due
date. Despite these risks, most ba­
bies bom late are healthy.
So what can
you expect after
y o u r due d a te
p a s s e s ? A fte r
4 1 -4 2 weeks o f pregnancy, your
doctor may perform tests to m oni­
tor the fetus’s health— such as
fetal heart rate testing, ultrasound
evaluation of am niotic fluid vol­
ume, or a biophysical profile—
several tim es each week. You may
also be instructed to count and
record the num ber of kicks your
baby m akes in a given am ount of
time or at certain tim es during the
day. Your doctor may use m edica­
tions that contain prostaglandins
or devices or substances designed
to quicken cervical ripening— a
softening, thinning, and opening
o f the cervix— that gets the body
ready for labor.
If you d o n ’t start labor on your
own by 41 -4 2 weeks, several com ­
mon techniques may be used to
induce it. Your doctor can sweep
a gloved finger over the thin m em ­
brane that connects the am niotic
sac to the uterus (“stripping the
m em brane” ), or may break your
w ater by m aking a hole in your
am niotic sac. You may be given
m isoprostol or oxytocin to stim u­
late or intensify contractions. In
some instances, cesarean deliv­
ery may be necessary if a w om an’s
labor still does not progress.
For more information, the patient
education pamphlet “What to Ex­
pect After Your Due Date” is avail­
able at acog.org/publications.
Dr. Richard N. Waldman is presi­
dent o f the American Congress o f
Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Page 15
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THE
EMMANUEL
Church of God in
Christ United
SPINA ¡COLUMN
4800 NE 30th Ave. Port­
land OR 9 7 2 11
TM
An ongoing series of questions and answers about Americas natural healing profession.
503-335-8772
You are cordially invited
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these services:
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Part 13. Shoulder Pain: Why many people
cannot, and should not, take it lying down.
Pastor & Wife -
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Worship Service 12:00 Noon
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: My shoulders hurt so bad bursitis at one office, tenosynovitis the cause was there long before
at times, I can hardly sleep. at another and so on until they the pain itself. By treating the
What can Chiropractic do for me
return home confused, frustrated cause, we not only relieve the pain,
that no one else has been able to? and still in agony. As Chiroprac­ d o n ’t su ffer through an o th er
: Shoulder pain ism without tors, we are concerned about nerve sleepless night. Call for an ap­
question, one o f the most flow to the various parts o f the pointment to find out how Chiro­
debilitating types of pain we en­
body. O f course, we look to see if a practic can eliminate the cause of
counter. Because the shoulder is bursal sac has been traumatized or the problem once and for all. Or
so intricately related to the spine, if a tendon has been injured. But feel free to call us if you have any
virtually any movement can be more importantly, we look to see questions whatsoever about your
excruciating. It is not at all uncom­ what caused the injury. You see, health.
mon to see cases like yours where
patients’ hurt so bad, they cannot
even get a decent night’s sleep.
2124 N .E. Hancock Street, Portland Oregon97212
To Complicate matters, many pa­
tients go from doctor to doctor
P h o n e: ( 5 0 3 ) 2 8 7 > 5 5 0 4
seeking relief, being told they have
Q
A
Flowers' Chiropractic Office