What are the dangers of fetal hypoxia?

Pregnancy is not an easy thing. For this reason, many pregnant women will be particularly careful during the pregnancy process to supplement various nutrients and promote the development of the baby. However, in some special cases, the fetus may have certain problems. For example, fetal hypoxia is a very serious condition. If the fetus suffers from long-term hypoxia, it may even lead to fetal death, permanent brain damage, and even endanger the life of the mother.

1. Death

Fetal distress mainly occurs during labor, but can also occur in late pregnancy. Those that occur during labor may be a continuation and aggravation of those that occur in late pregnancy. Fetal distress is common in the prenatal period, mainly manifested by placental insufficiency.

Fetal death : Pathophysiological high-risk pregnancy, such as gestational hypertension, chronic hypertension, nephritis, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, severe anemia, overdue pregnancy, etc., or due to vascular disease that reduces uterine blood flow, or due to placental degeneration, or due to low blood oxygen concentration, the fetus cannot get enough oxygen, causing fetal growth retardation, polycythemia, decreased fetal movement, and even severe fetal distress, causing fetal intrauterine death.

Neonatal death : Fetal distress and birth asphyxia are both important causes of perinatal death and neurological sequelae, accounting for the first cause of perinatal death. When the fetus has mild ischemia or early ischemia, the main manifestations are vasodilation of important organs such as the heart, brain, and adrenal glands, and contraction of peripheral blood vessels such as the liver, kidneys, intestines and limbs to ensure the normal function of important vital organs; when the fetus is in a state of hypoxia for a long time, the ischemia is further aggravated and heart failure occurs. Coupled with the secretion of local vasoactive substances, the blood flow to all organs decreases. At this time, the fetus is in an irreversible damage stage, which endangers the life of the perinatal baby and can even lead to the death of the newborn in severe cases.

2. Permanent brain damage

The brain is an organ that is most sensitive to ischemia and acidosis. There are many factors that cause brain damage, and fetal hypoxia is one of them. Ischemic and hypoxic encephalopathy is the most serious complication of fetal distress. There are two types of brain tissue damage caused by fetal hypoxia: the first is functional damage. Long-term follow-up of fetuses with mild or chronic fetal distress and fetal growth restriction shows that their subsequent intellectual development is lower than that of normal fetuses. The second is organic damage. In severe brain hypoxia, it is easy to cause complications such as cerebral edema, brain cell necrosis, and cerebral hemorrhage, which is called ischemic and hypoxic encephalopathy.

If fetal hypoxia is treated promptly and recovered, and only temporary damage is caused to the fetal brain, the fetus will recover in about a week of treatment. If the fetus is deprived of oxygen for a long time, the brain cells in the fetus will be deformed and necrotic, and it will be difficult to recover in the short term. In more serious cases, permanent brain damage will occur.

3. Endangering the life and health of pregnant women

Severe fetal hypoxia may directly cause miscarriage, premature birth or even intrauterine fetal death in pregnant women, endangering the health of the mother. For pregnant women with chronic diseases such as heart, lung, and kidney diseases, pregnancy increases the burden on organs such as the heart, lung, and kidney, which may lead to organ failure, thus putting their lives in danger.