M.A. asks from Chicago, IL on November 11, 2008
Low Amniotic Fluid once...will It Happen Again?
Hello Moms,
At 36 1/2 weeks with my first pregnancy it was discovered that I had very low amniotic fluid and they induced me. I am now 30 weeks pregnant with my second child and am starting to get nervous about his happening again. My midwives assure me that it is unlikely, but we have scheduled at ultrasound at 35 weeks, just to be sure. Has anyone had low fluid during one pregnancy, but not another? Do you think there is anything you can do to keep your amniotic fluid at a normal level?
Thanks moms!
More Answers
D.N. answers from Chicago on November 12, 2008
The first time around with triplets, I had low fluid at 34 weeks with my son and they could not measure him clearly. They were born a few days later due to infant distress with one of my girls. They were just going to monitor me. The second time around this year, I kept asking about problems that would come up. No problems this time around. She actually decided to hold out another week. Talking to other moms, the amount of fluids you take in affects the amount of amniotic fluid, and of course there could be other issues. It is very hard not to be nervous when you have had problems before, but try to relax and just keep asking questions. the next 5 weeks will fly by. Good Luck.
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D.E. answers from Chicago on November 13, 2008
I had low fluid with my first child and became dehydrated also. I was not a big water drinker at the time.
My second child I had no problem, but I also was much more diligent about drinking water in that pregnancy.
I assume there is some correlation, but who knows?
Hope that helps some!
D.
www.TheReadingMother.com
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K. answers from Chicago on November 12, 2008
The reason docs get worried about low fluid is that it's an indicator of how well blood is flowing from the placenta to the baby. So if you have low fluid and it can't be brought up by staying well-hydrated, they worry about the baby. Fortunately, it's unlikely that you'd have placenta problems a second time. I had low fluids with my last pregnancy, but I was also over 41 weeks pregnant at the time (so they were worried about the placenta getting old at that point). Fortunately for me and my baby, I went into labor the same day they did the measurements, so I didn't have to be induced.
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B.M. answers from Chicago on November 13, 2008
Congratulations on your two girls!!
Your amniotic fluid replaces itself every 3 hours, so if you had an ultra sound and it shows low fluid, if you drank a ton of water and had a 2nd scan 3-4 hours later, you might get a different result.
Keeping up your fluids is your best bet to it not happening again.
I do know that its hard to not stress when you've encountered issues with a prior pregnancy!
Try to enjoy your last 10 weeks!!
Congrats Again,
B.
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L. answers from Chicago on November 12, 2008
Hi!
I was just like you and had low amniotic fluid at 36 weeks with my son. Unfortunately it was discovered at about 25 weeks that I had it with my daughter. I was measuring too small so they did an ultrasound. It turned out to be a complicated situation of low amniotic fluid and a growth restriction. So LONG story short I went to the dr. 3xs a week and specialist at Loyola and they induced me at 35 weeks(when she stopped growing) and I had a baby girl who was 4lb 11 oz. They assure me that it is a minimal risk of it happening again if I have another baby--we are not planning on it. I don't know if this was at all related to the low fluid I had with my son--he was 9lbs, but the doctors say it is unrelated. Just have them monitor it closely and try not to worry(easier said than done).
Good Luck!!
L.
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