Meconium

9 replies

biggernow · 02/11/2009 12:16

Hey!
Does anyone know if there are any alternative explanations to meconium in waters other than fetal distress? Had this with DS1 but wondering how distressed he really was- he was happy as larry on arrival and very mellow. Due DC2 in 2 weeks and just arming myself with extra info......
thanks!
BN

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

rach345 · 02/11/2009 12:19

meconium in the waters can cause baby to inhale it when it takes his first breath, if they happens if can cause breathing problems cus its is thick and makes the lungs not inflate, it can cause infection in his lungs.

bigcar · 02/11/2009 13:02

I had this with 2 of mine, they weren't in distress at all, just late! I would think that although it can be an indication of distress, extra monitoring would tell you what was really going on.

LeninGuido · 03/11/2009 06:29

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

scarlotti · 03/11/2009 08:15

Same here with DS, slightly green waters but he was 5 days overdue and getting cramped inside. Waters went before contractions and he was as happy as larry in there, so just ready to come out.
Wish I'd known earlier as could have avoided being strapped to the bed and constantly monitored - made it harder than being able to walk around and get gravity to help!

JJ1471 · 03/11/2009 14:35

I don't know what grade it was but the meconium in my waters was only very slight. When I was first put on the monitor they seemed to think that he was in distress and were talking c-section, but I think that it was just because it was early in the morning and he hadn't woken up, so he wasn't moving much. Once he started moving about they weren't worried and I was able to proceed with a normal delivery (apart from being strapped to the monitor).

Ds was also overdue (10 days), so that may have been something to do with it.

reikizen · 03/11/2009 14:41

Meconium can simply be as a result of the maturation of the baby's digestive tract which is why it is more common when you go over your dates. As long as there are no signs of distress it can be completely harmless.

LeninGuido · 03/11/2009 20:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Tangle · 04/11/2009 07:50

There's quite a lot of info here that can be taken generically rather than in a homebirth context.

I'd tend to agree with the view that, depending on the type, meconium can be a sign of foetal distress but more usually something to be aware of and factor into considerations as labour progresses than something to trigger panic stations. That's my personal opinion as a lay person that's done some reading, though, rather than a qualified anything...

Original poster

biggernow · 04/11/2009 09:42

Thanks all for your interesting feedback. I will see how things progress- can't exactly plan anything with labour.....!!!

OP posts:

Flip