The process of pregnancy, conceived by nature, is designed for 287 days. Deviations from these dates are possible, but there is always a good reason for them. If the due date calculated by the doctor has already passed, but the birth has not yet occurred, it should be assumed that the pregnancy is overdue.
A post-term pregnancy is a pregnancy that lasts more than 42 weeks or more than 294 days. It occurs in about 4-14% of cases. Most often it is faced by primiparous women after 30 years. Moreover, every pregnancy that ends in a delayed birth increases the risk of postmaturity in a subsequent pregnancy.
All changes in the placenta that occur during pregnancy lead to prolonged protracted labor and can cause birth injuries to the fetus (clavicle fractures, various hematomas) and other complications. All of them are dangerous for the newborn and disrupt the process of its adaptation to extrauterine life.
The reasons for overshoot are manifold. In most cases, it develops with a combination of causes, risk factors, characteristics of the body of the pregnant woman and the fetus itself. These include:
• insufficient restructuring of the woman's nervous system for childbirth - an incorrect ratio in the work of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system, an insufficiently formed generic dominant (a special reflex system responsible for the timely onset of childbirth);
• endocrine pathologies - diabetes mellitus, obesity, hypothyroidism;
• hormonal imbalance, in particular a decrease in the level of estriol, which is responsible for the readiness of the uterus and genital tract for childbirth;
• complications of pregnancy - oligohydramnios or chronic placental insufficiency;
• mental trauma.
The causes of overdose of pregnancy can be violations of the female reproductive system:
• genital infantilism (underdevelopment of the reproductive apparatus);
• anomalies in the development of the reproductive system - ovarian dysfunction, menstrual irregularities;
• transferred gynecological infections;
• injuries of the genital organs;
• history of induced or spontaneous abortions.
The causes of overgestation on the part of the fetus may be its chromosomal abnormalities (Down's syndrome, polycystic kidney disease) or severe malformations:
• anencephaly (absence of the brain);
• hydrocephalus (increased volume of fluid in the brain);
• microcephaly (small brain).
If you experience similar symptoms, consult your doctor. Do not self-medicate - it is dangerous for your health!