Neonatal death

Fundamental POINTS

  • The nigh common causes of neonatal death are premature birth, depression birthweight and nativity defects.

  • An autopsy may help y'all find out why your baby died. You can cull whether or non you want to have an autopsy on your infant.

  • Your wellness care provider or a genetic counselor may assistance you acquire why your baby died and if you may have the same bug in another pregnancy.

  • Getting counseling and support can help y'all cope with your babe's death.

What is neonatal death?

Neonatal death is when a babe dies in the kickoff 28 days of life. If your babe dies this soon after birth, you may have many questions most how and why it happened. Your infant'southward health care provider tin can help yous acquire as much as possible nearly your baby's death.

Neonatal death happens in almost 4 in 1,000 babies (less than one pct) each year in the U.s.. Non-Hispanic black women are more likely to take a babe dice than women of other races or ethnicities.

What are common causes of neonatal decease?

The most common causes of neonatal death are:

  • Premature nascency. This is when a baby is born too early, before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Babies born likewise early may have more health problems than babies born on fourth dimension.
  • Low birthweight. This is when a baby is born weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces. Babies born besides small may have more health problems than babies born at a healthy weight.
  • Birth defects. Nascency defects are health conditions that are present at nascence. Birth defects modify the shape or function of one or more parts of the body. They can crusade problems in overall health, how the body develops or in how the trunk works.

Premature birth and low birthweight cause about 1 in iv neonatal deaths (25 per centum). Birth defects crusade virtually 1 in five neonatal deaths (xx percentage).

Other causes of neonatal death include:

  • Bug in pregnancy, like preeclampsia. This is a condition that tin happen afterward the 20th week of pregnancy or right after pregnancy. Information technology's when a pregnant adult female has loftier blood pressure and signs that some of her organs, like her kidneys and liver, may non be working properly. Signs of preeclampsia include having protein in the urine, changes in vision and severe headaches.
  • Problems with the placenta, umbilical string and amniotic sac (handbag of waters). The placenta grows in your uterus (womb) and supplies the baby with food and oxygen through the umbilical cord. The amniotic sac contains the fluid that surrounds the baby in the womb.
  • Infections, like sepsis. Sepsis is a serious blood infection.
  • Asphyxia. This is when a infant doesn't get enough oxygen before or during birth.

Why are premature babies more likely to die shortly after nascence than babies born on time?

Some premature babies may develop serious complications that can sometimes cause expiry. These complications include:

  • Respiratory distress syndrome (also called RDS). This is a breathing problem most common in babies built-in before 34 weeks of pregnancy. Babies with RDS don't have a protein called surfactant that keeps small air sacs in the lungs from collapsing. RDS causes nigh 825 neonatal deaths each year.
  • Intraventricular hemorrhage (also chosen IVH). This is haemorrhage in the brain. Nigh brain bleeds are mild and resolve themselves with no or few lasting issues. More severe bleeds can crusade serious problems for a baby.
  • Necrotizing enterocolitis (also called NEC). This is a problem with a baby's intestines. It tin can cause feeding problems, a swollen belly and diarrhea. It sometimes happens 2 to three weeks after a premature birth. It tin be treated with medicine and sometimes surgery. But in serious cases, it can cause expiry.
  • Infections. Premature babies frequently accept problem fighting off germs because their immune systems aren't fully formed. Infections that may cause decease in a premature baby include pneumonia (a lung infection), sepsis (a claret infection) and meningitis (an infection in the fluid around the brain and spinal cord).

What birth defects most oftentimes crusade neonatal expiry?

The about common birth defects that crusade neonatal death include:

  • Heart defects. Almost babies with heart defects survive and practice well considering of medical treatments and surgery. Just babies with serious center defects may not survive long enough to have treatment, or they may not survive after treatment.
  • Lung defects. A baby may be built-in with problems in one or both lungs or with lungs that aren't fully developed. Lung defects can happen when the lungs don't develop correctly due to other birth defects or pregnancy problems (such equally not enough amniotic fluid). Premature babies tin have lung problems that cause neonatal death.
  • Genetic conditions. Genes are office of the cells in your torso. They shop instructions for the way your body grows, looks and works. Genetic conditions are acquired by a gene that'due south changed from its regular form. A gene can alter on its own, or the changed gene can be passed from parents to children.
  • Brain conditions. Neonatal death can be acquired by problems in the encephalon, like anencephaly. This is a condition called a neural tube defect (too chosen NTD) in which most of a babe's brain and skull are missing. Babies with anencephaly may be stillborn (when a infant dies in the womb later on twenty weeks of pregnancy) or dice in the first days of life. If you lot've had a infant with anencephaly, talk to your health care provider near taking folic acid to help prevent NTDs in your next pregnancy.

Your health care provider tin employ prenatal tests (medical tests yous get during pregnancy) to check your baby for birth defects before birth. These tests include:

  • Amniocentesis (as well called amnio). In this test, your provider takes some amniotic fluid from around your baby in the uterus. The test checks for birth defects and genetic conditions in your infant. You lot tin can get this test at 15 to xx weeks of pregnancy.
  • Chorionic villus sampling (as well called CVS). This test checks tissue from the placenta to run across if your baby has a genetic condition, like Down syndrome. You lot can go CVS at ten to thirteen weeks of pregnancy.
  • Ultrasound. This test uses sound waves and a computer screen to testify a moving picture of a babe in the womb. It can assist find birth defects like spina bifida, anencephaly and heart defects.

Practice you lot need to have an autopsy on your baby?

Your baby's health care providers can tell you what they know about what caused your infant to dice. If you want more information, you lot may want to have an dissection on your infant. An autopsy is a surgical exam of your baby's body later death to help find the cause of death and whatever diseases or injuries. An dissection gives data almost why a baby dies in more than 1 in 3 cases. This information can exist helpful to you lot if y'all think yous may desire to accept another baby in the time to come. Information technology's your selection whether or not to take an autopsy on your baby. Families often have to pay for an autopsy, so inquire your baby'due south health care provider about payment. Some hospitals or states may pay for a infant's autopsy; nearly health insurance companies don't pay for one.

If yous don't desire to have an autopsy, your baby's wellness care provider may be able to utilize other tests to discover more data about why your infant died. These tests include genetic tests, Ten-rays and tests on the placenta and umbilical cord.

If the cause of your babe'southward death was a birth defect, you lot can come across with a genetic counselor to learn more almost information technology. You besides can learn about the chances of having another babe with the aforementioned nascence defect. A genetic advisor is a person who is trained to help you understand about how genes, birth defects and other medical atmospheric condition run in families, and how they can affect your health and your baby's wellness.

How tin yous deal with your grief?

Talking nearly your feelings may help you bargain with the grief yous feel about your infant's death. Grief is all the feelings you lot have when a loved one dies. Visit shareyourstory.org, our online customs where families who have lost a baby tin talk to and comfort each other. Sharing your baby's story may ease your pain and help you heal.

More information

  • From hurt to healing (gratuitous booklet from the March of Dimes for grieving parents)
  • Share Your Story (March of Dimes online community for families to share experiences with prematurity, birth defects and loss)
  • Centering Corporation (general grief data and resources)
  • Compassionate Friends (resources for families after the death of a child)
  • First Candle (resources for families afterward the death of a child by SIDS or preventable stillbirth)
  • Journey Plan of Seattle Children'southward Infirmary (resource for families after the death of a kid)
  • Now I Lay Me Down to Slumber (remembrance photography)
  • Perinatal Hospice & Palliative Care (resource for parents who find out during pregnancy that their infant has a life-limiting condition
  • Share Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support (resources for families with pregnancy or babe loss)
  • Star Legacy Foundation (resources for families who have had a stillbirth)

Last reviewed: October, 2017