Intrauterine Growth Restriction Essay

Intrauterine growth retardation is now known as intrauterine growth restriction or IUGR. Intrauterine growth restriction is a condition where an unborn baby is not growing at the normal rate that it should and is therefore smaller than the 10th percentile for their gestational age (Bates, et al., 2015). Studies have shown what size a baby should be at every stage of the pregnancy. In the earlier months of the pregnancy, all babies are normally the same size; only if there is a health concern should there be any deviation. Babies in the later stages of the pregnancy normally start to vary in weight and size. However, just because a baby is small in utero doesn’t mean that it is an IUGR baby. If the mother or father is very petite, then the baby may be a smaller baby; there is only concern when the baby isn’t growing at a normal rate. The health care provider measures the uterus during every prenatal visit to ensure that the uterus is growing, and an ultrasound can help confirm the baby’s growth more. Intrauterine growth restriction increases the risk of newborn complications, as well as complications during the

Many mothers don’t even know there is an issue with the baby other than the belly not being big, or the mother not feeling as much movement as she would hope to. If the mother notices that the baby isn’t moving at all she should seek medical attention right away. If the baby was very active before, or if the mother just hasn’t felt the baby moving much the health care provider may tell the mother to keep a “kick count” log. The mother will just sit for about an hour, three times a day and count the amount of kicks or movements she feels. Often times when mothers are up and active they may not feel gentle moves of the baby, so sitting still for an hour in a relaxed room forces the mother to notice every