Prolonged pregnancy

Definition: any pregnancy last for 24 weeks or more (ie:294 days or more).
It cause an anxiety for both woman& obstetrician. It’s not pathological& should be differentiated from post maturity syndrome( which is resemble IUGR).


Fetal risk of post term pregnancy:

1.fetal hypoxia &acidosis
2.increase PNM& morbidity
3.neonatal seizure& prenatal death
4.macrosomic baby &need for C/S.
5.shoulder dystocia & birth trauma like skull fracture &brachial plexuses injury
6. muconium stain syndrome
7.increase incidence of sudden infant death syndrome
8. increase incidence of cerebral pulsy & intraventicular hemorrhage.


Maternal risk of post term pregnancy:

1.increase operative delivery
2. increase incidence of post partum hemorrhage
3. 2. increase incidence of prolonged labor with it’s complication like fetal distress, maternal distress, obstructed labor, rupture uterus ,pph & maternal infection.


4.increase maternal anxiety &psychological morbidity.


Incidence:


About 4-14% of pregnancies are post term & tis incidence is reduced significantly when dating of pregnancy is done by first trimester U/S.