Data from the State Department of Health (SES) show that in 2022 Rio Grande do Sul had 15,559 children born at less than 37 weeks, consideredThes prematureThes. That represents 13% of the total of 121 thousand babies born alive in the year. Established in 2011O November Purple marks international prematurity awareness month. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) estimates that 1.2 million premature babies are born in the Americas every year.nually.
Premature birth may occur due to the need to interrupt the pregnancy due to maternal and/or neonatal complications and also in a spontaneousPorem, the causes are complex and multifactorial. “Prenatal care started early is a factor in preventing prematurity, as it allows the identification of maternal and fetal risk factors that can be prevented or treated in a timely manner. Ideally, these factors should be identified before pregnancy, through reproductive planning”, explains GisleinIt is Silva, head of the Life Cycles Division of the State Department of Health (SES).
From 2019 until October 2023, there were 75,517 premature babies in Rio Grande do Sul, representing 12% of about 608 thousand live births in the period. O given away 2022 It’s still preliminary and the number 2023 It’s parkuntil October.
Carrying out sexual and reproductive planning by the couple who wish to have children is important to detect the existence of any risk factor or disease that requires treatment. prior to gestation. Early initiation of prenatal care is essential for monitoring pregnancy and controlling pre-existing chronic diseases, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. The partner’s prenatal care is also important, as Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) can trigger premature birth.
Rio Grande do Sul works based on the Maternal Paternal Child Network to qualify prenatal care, encouraging normal birth, implementing Progressive Neonatal Care, actions to promote breastfeeding, the implementation of milk banks and actions of the State Committee for Preventing and Combating Maternal, Child and Fetal Mortality. The Committee seeks to identify the circumstances of the death, prepare recommendations and proposes interventions to prevent avoidable deaths.
Risk factors for premature birth
The following are risk factors for prematurity: iurinary infection, especially if untreated during pregnancy; premature rupture of the amniotic sac with choreoamnionitis untreated during pregnancy; twinning; systemic arterial hypertension and pre eclampsia during pregnancy; diabetes; Syphilis, Toxoplasmosis and Streptococcus type B; previous history of prematurity in a previous pregnancy; lack of prenatal care and cervical isthmus insufficiency of the cervix.
Actions available by the State regarding the care of premature babies
Neonatal ICU Outpatient Clinics – distributed in different regions of the State, 14 outpatient clinics they monitor premature newborns who were discharged from the Neonatal ICUs. These outpatient clinics have a multidisciplinary team and a differentiated protocol for the care of high-risk babies for various morbidities and sequelae that can be minimized through quality monitoring.
Kangaroo Method – the State has 19 services with the Kangaroo Method availablehebeing 17 enabledlink to the Unified Health System (SUS)what offer a qualified and humanized care for premature and/or low birth weight newborns who require hospitalization in a Neonatal Unit and their families. To this end, it promotes skin-to-skin contact between the baby and the mother and/or father and the parents’ participation in the care of the newborn, with the aim of strengthening the emotional bond and promoting healthy child growth and development.
Breastfeeding and the Implementation of Human Milk Banks in Maternity Hospitals – Human Milk Banks (BLH) aim to provide support for mothers of premature babies admitted to neonatology so that breastfeeding can be established after discharge and also to provide human milk, as prescribed, to premature babies while they are hospitalized. In total, in Rio Grande do Sul, there are inz BLHs and nine Human Milk Collection Stations.
In the Rede Bem Cuidar (RBC), a strategic project of the State Department of Health (SES), municipalities join and begin to develop targeted actions to qualify primary health care. From 2024, the priority cycle will be maternal-paternal-child, focusing on prenatal care, postpartum care, childcare/child health and reproductive planning.
