pregnancy

Water breakage

Generality

When we talk about breaking water, we want to indicate one of the characteristic symptoms of labor. More precisely, this symptom manifests itself at the end of pregnancy and represents a clear sign of the imminent birth.

In truth, rather than breaking the waters, it would be correct to speak of " spontaneous rupture of the membranes " or, in medical jargon, of spontaneous amnioresses ; this is because this symptom consists precisely in the rupture of the amniotic sac (envelope containing the fetus and the amniotic fluid).

Features

As can be easily understood, the breaking of the water is accompanied by the release of the amniotic fluid previously contained in the homonymous bag.

The liquid that comes out when the water is broken is a colorless, odorless and warm liquid. These characteristics make it possible to differentiate it from vaginal discharge (more viscous and whitish) and from involuntary leakage of urine (acrid odor), which are typical above all in the final period of pregnancy.

The liquid, however, does not always come out in large quantities, such as to allow the woman to recognize with certainty the happened breaking of the waters. In fact, in some cases, the amniotic sac may not completely break, giving rise to small and intermittent losses, and this could confuse the ideas to the pregnant woman. For this reason, in case of doubt and / or if there are any leaks of liquid of uncertain origin at the end of the pregnancy, it is always good to immediately contact your gynecologist or go to the hospital, where a correct diagnosis will be made.

Associated symptoms

Water rupture usually occurs at the beginning of labor and is associated with other symptoms, such as uterine contractions . These contractions are characterized by a pain that becomes more and more intense, and occur continuously, at regular intervals that tend to shorten as you approach the time of birth.

However, in some cases, it can also happen that the waters break before the onset of contractions and this could cause some problems.

The rupture of the waters without the presence of uterine contractions, in fact, can expose both the mother and the fetus to an increased risk of contraction of infections. Normally, the amniotic sac is free of pathogenic or potentially microorganisms, while these are present at the genital, urinary and rectal levels. Breaking water without contractions could cause these pathogens to come into contact with the amniotic fluid and the fetus, thus exposing it to potential risks.

In these cases, if the expectant mother has reached the end of her pregnancy, she usually intervenes with hospitalization and with the observation of both mother and fetus. If the uterine contractions do not appear in the following 24 hours, then they will be artificially induced in the hospital through the administration of specific drugs, or through other methods that the doctor will consider more appropriate for each case.

Premature water rupture

In some cases, water rupture can occur well in advance of the expected date of pregnancy. In these situations, therefore, we speak of premature rupture of the water, or of preterm amnioresses.

In addition to the potential risk of contracting infections for both the fetus and the mother, in the event of rupture of the preterm waters, the risk of a premature birth is met, with all the consequences that can derive from it.

In these cases, therefore, it is essential to immediately contact your gynecologist and go to the hospital, where all possible measures will be taken to safeguard the safety of both the fetus and the mother.

Water Break Induction

Sometimes it may be necessary to artificially induce water breakage. In the medical field, in these cases, we speak of iatrogenic amnioresses.

The delicate procedure that involves the artificial rupture of the water takes the name of amniotomy and must be performed only and exclusively by a gynecologist or, possibly, by an obstetrician.

This surgical procedure substantially consists in making an incision in the amniotic sac using a special instrument. As soon as the membrane of the amniotic sac is incised, the water is broken and, in turn, promotes the production of prostaglandins. The prostaglandins thus produced stimulate uterine contractions and all this translates into an acceleration of the timing of birth.

The amniotomy, however, must be practiced only in restricted cases and only when it is really necessary, such as, for example, in the case in which the labor is proceeding in an excessively slow manner, or in the case in which, with advanced labor, the water breaking has not yet occurred spontaneously.

In fact, this surgery is certainly not free from side effects; on the contrary, with this procedure there is an increased risk of contracting intrauterine infections, as well as the risk of causing changes in the fetal heart rate which, therefore, must be carefully monitored, both before and after the artificial induction of the rupture of the fetus waters.