History of water birth
1803: The first water birth occurred in France. It was because the mother-to-be felt exhausted and went into the hot tub to relax, and the baby was soon born in the water.
1960s: A pregnant woman in the former Soviet Union gave birth to a healthy baby boy in water.
It was in the 1970s that water birth was introduced as a medically significant form of natural childbirth.
In the late 1980s, the first water birth center was established in the United States, and by 1995, the number of hospitals in the United States that were equipped to perform water births had grown from 10 to 150.
How does water birth actually work?
--Interview with Shanghai Changning Maternity and Child Health Center
Water birth is a hot topic right now. It's no wonder that Chinese women, who have been used to giving birth to their children while lying down for thousands of years, are eager to try it once they learn that they can give birth to their babies under water, and that it's safer and healthier. So what's the deal with water birth? Want to water birth should pay attention to what problems? A few days ago, the reporter dialed the Shanghai Changning Maternal and Child Health Hospital maternity ward phone, in the capacity of a pregnant woman and a midwife surnamed Wang carried out the following conversation.
Reporter: I am a 7-month pregnant woman in Beijing, very interested in water birth, I wonder how to know whether I am suitable for it?
Wang midwife: First of all, you have to be prepared, water birth is not suitable for everyone, some pregnant women have an appointment to do water birth, to the delivery may be due to changes in circumstances, can not be done. It depends on the size and position of the fetus. The fetus is too big to do, preferably at 6 ? to 7 pounds, the fetal position is preferably cephalic, and cephalic position has a variety of situations, face down, face out, face up, preferably face down, face out or face up are not in favor of doing it, because of the risks.
Reporter: If I want to have a water birth, when should I go to your hospital?
Midwife Wang: In general, if you want to have a water birth, you should be admitted to the hospital a week in advance for checkups if you are normal in all aspects of your body.
Reporter: Is water birth dangerous?
Wang midwife; water birth is not dangerous, because it is a very natural way of childbirth, the world promotes a variety of natural ways, such as lying down, sitting, squatting and so on. If the water birth does not work, you can immediately change the mode of delivery, delivery in the delivery bed, if there are special circumstances feasible cesarean section.
Reporter: According to my understanding, the benefits of water birth for women are short labor, less pain, in addition to what other benefits?
Midwife Wang: The biggest benefit of water birth is that it is natural and there is no need for side cuts. Our hospital since March 1 last year, has done more than 100 cases, none of the lateral incision, only individual pregnant women have a natural laceration, which avoids a lot of disease infection
Reporter: How much does the cost of water birth?
Wang midwife: the cost of water birth if the normal delivery of about five or six thousand yuan, the rest plus the number of days of hospitalization and hospital beds and other separate calculations, a more accurate figure you had better consult the hospitalization department.
Reporter: I would also like to ask if the water birth is now done by the obstetrician?
Midwife Wang: We do water delivery here are midwives, midwives are also certified, not necessarily obstetricians. If you're looking for a place to do it in Shanghai, you should bring all your prenatal checkups and medical records with you during your pregnancy.
During the interview, the reporter learned that water birth is a very interesting process. The mother's entire body is immersed in the water, and the water waves slightly bump against her body, which increases the activity of the woman's uterine muscles and makes labor smoother and easier. Most often babies are born the moment the mother leaves the water, but sometimes labor occurs under water. Although the baby is moving in the amniotic fluid in the uterus, it is not breathing and the baby's lungs are not open. After a water birth, the newborn is still in the water and his lungs are still not open, so he won't choke. However, if the newborn's head has been exposed to air, and then the baby's head is put into the water, then it is inevitable that the baby will choke, this is because the baby's lungs have already opened after being exposed to air. Newborn babies dance their tiny hands and feet in the water like little dolphins before the midwife takes them out of the water.
Foreign countries are strict about water births
Foreign countries have carried out water births earlier, and what is their attitude towards this issue? The reporter recently interviewed Zhang Lin, deputy chief physician of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of PLA 304 Hospital.
According to Director Zhang, a hospital in Ireland selected 301 pregnant women of the same age and number of births as a control, the results show that warm water will significantly reduce the pain of pregnant women, in the water is conducive to pregnant women to rest, easier to relax, shorten the duration of labor, but also reduces the rate of perineal circumcision of pregnant women. The article concludes that water birth is safe for normal, low-risk pregnancies with the help of an experienced midwife.
But in Europe and the United States, there are different opinions about the safety of water birth. This type of delivery can also have terrible consequences such as death of the newborn. After the baby leaves the mother's body, it will start breathing before it comes out of the water due to lack of oxygen. This could potentially cause the newborn to inhale pool water into his or her own lungs, leading to choking or even death. Therefore, the Active Birth Center in the UK has made strict rules for water birth:
1. Control the water temperature: the water temperature should be kept at 36 to 37 degrees Celsius, similar to the human body temperature.
2. The water in the birthing pool must be strictly sterilized: the mother must empty her bowels or wash with an enema before entering the pool, the birthing pool must be kept clean, and the water needs to be changed 2-3 times throughout the birthing process.
3. Avoid prolonged immersion in the water: the pregnant woman's uterus dilated to five centimeters before entering the pool, the baby must leave the pool immediately after birth, and stay in the water for no more than a minute.
4. Experienced midwives to deliver: each pregnant woman should have two midwives to deliver, midwives should have the experience of observing more than two cases of water birth delivery.
Birth:
To water or not to water?
---Expert views on the big fight
Positive side: reduce pressure and pain
Shanghai Women's Disease Rehabilitation Specialized Committee executive deputy director of the humanization of childbirth research experts Yu Junde told reporters, the main advantage of water delivery is that it can reduce the The main advantage of water birth is that it can reduce the pain of the mother, the power of the water package can give the mother a psychological sense of security, the water's embracing effect on the birth canal and the pelvis can play a protective role. Of course, this foreign way of assisting childbirth is a great challenge to China's thousands of years of production methods. He told reporters that water birth makes a part of highly educated and open-minded women, to satisfy curiosity. They believe that this novel birthing process not only reduces pain, but also meets their current needs for a diversified life. He said that Germans would throw their newborn babies into the water for exercise. Water birth is good exercise for the newborn's physical and respiratory functions.
But Mr. Yu also cautioned that despite the many benefits of water births, mothers and their families should consider beforehand whether they belong to the unsuitable group. The following groups of people are not suitable for water delivery: 1. pregnant women with large fetuses. During the birth of the first child, the birth canal is not dilated, which can cause perineal tears. The weight of the baby delivered in water should be controlled at about 3 kilograms.2. Mothers with a history of miscarriage are not suitable for water delivery for safety reasons.3. Those who are older or younger. If you are too young to be psychologically prepared, or if you are over 30 years old, you can be considered an "advanced maternal age" and should have a cesarean section. 4. If you have a medical condition. 5. If you do not know what you are going to do before you deliver your baby. It is essential for women to attend a hospital-organized "maternity class" before giving birth.
Opposing side: too much danger should be careful
Ministry of Health Clinical Expert Working Group, National AIDS Comprehensive Prevention and Control Model District Expert Working Guidance Group members, Peking Union Medical College Hospital Obstetrics and Gynecology Fan Qingpo, deputy director of the reporter, said that at present, water delivery is not suitable to promote in China, mainly for the following reasons:
1. Some large hospitals have the conditions to carry out, but such hospitals have a high rate of pregnant women waiting for delivery, water delivery equipment is limited, so the sterilization and various preparations for the delivery equipment and utensils prepared for the water delivery of women in labor, labor and time-consuming, which will inadvertently increase the workload of the hospital and may reduce the quality of medical care.
2. Chinese women and foreign women, especially in Europe and the United States, have different physiology and shape: pregnant women in Europe and the United States are taller, and the exit of the pelvic birth canal is wider, so pregnant women in Europe and the United States have a natural "anatomical"
advantage of water delivery. In addition, Europe and the United States, more pregnant women after delivery, the labor process after delivery fast, but also for the water delivery to provide a safety guarantee, while in China, most of the pregnant women are primigravida, delivery of the first child, the labor process is long, the birth canal and perineal conditions are poorer than those of women after delivery. The long duration of labor is not conducive to fetal heart rate monitoring, labor progress monitoring and postpartum neonatal rescue and resuscitation during water delivery, and it is not possible to detect intrauterine distress in time, especially meconium-type intrauterine distress. If intrauterine fetal distress occurs and emergency cesarean section is needed to terminate the pregnancy, intrauterine infection occurs and the chance of wound infection increases.
3. Disinfection and prevention of cross-infection is not easy to solve: Although pregnant women are tested for some common infectious diseases before delivery, and medical files are available. However, at present, some common sexually transmitted diseases such as human papilloma virus, gonorrhea, herpes simplex virus and so on are not given to pregnant women to check, and AIDS is on the rise in China, and there is a latent period, so once the disinfection of the gatekeeper is lax or there is a negligence, it will be difficult to avoid cross-infection. These dangers are often unavoidable in water births.
In addition, "water birth" is only one of the ways to alleviate the pain of labor, the so-called advantages of this method, such as shorter delivery time, faster recovery of the maternal body, the baby smarter, less pain, less wounds and so on, there is no scientific research data to confirm.