Thirty-eight weeks pregnant, belly pain

The thirty-eighth week of pregnancy belongs to the late stage of pregnancy, and any abdominal pain that occurs during this stage needs to be taken seriously. At 38 weeks of pregnancy, you may feel a little pain in your belly. The actual location of the pain is difficult to determine, but there are only a few reasons for the pain at this time. You can make a comprehensive judgment based on the possible reasons and your own situation. So, why does my belly hurt a little at 38 weeks of pregnancy? Let’s take a look below.

Uterine contraction refers to the regular contraction of the uterus, which is an important monitoring indicator in clinical prenatal examinations for pregnant women. The main sign of labor is regular uterine contractions. The fetus should be monitored during the perinatal period and delivery process, and the monitoring content includes two important indicators: fetal heart rate and uterine contraction. There is a contraction curve in the electronic fetal heart rate monitoring, which records the rate of rise and fall of contraction pressure, the maximum pressure, duration and the interval between two contractions. Uterine contractions can cause the fetal heart rate to speed up or slow down. The quality of uterine contractions can directly affect fetal heart rate movement and delivery.

Contraction time

Uterine contraction time refers to the time when the uterus contracts regularly. When a pregnant woman is about to give birth, she will feel the contractions gradually become stronger, last for a certain period of time, and then gradually weaken until they disappear. Uterine contractions initially occur every 20 to 30 minutes, and then the interval between two contractions gradually shortens to 15 minutes, 10 minutes or even 5 minutes each time. The duration of contractions initially lasts about 20 seconds, and then gradually increases to 40 seconds or even 1 minute.

False labor

In the weeks before delivery, the uterine muscles are more sensitive and there will be irregular uterine contractions that are short-lived, weak, or limited to the lower abdomen or groin area. If it stops after several hours, it will not cause the cervix to open or the fetal head to descend, so it is not labor and is called false labor. This type of contraction is irregular, non-cyclical, and painless. Some pregnant women can even feel irregular uterine contractions during the second trimester. It is more common in multiparas than in primiparas. There is a difference between true labor contractions (labor contractions) and false labor contractions. Labor contractions become more regular and stronger, with dilation of the cervix, descent of the fetal head, and possible light vaginal bleeding. However, even for very skilled clinicians, it is difficult to distinguish between frequent false labor and labor contractions based on symptoms alone, and further observation, monitoring, and obstetric examination are required.

Uterine atony

Labor force is the driving force of childbirth, which is mainly based on the force of uterine contraction. During labor, abnormal regularity, symmetry, and polarity of uterine contractions or changes in intensity and frequency are called uterine contractility abnormalities. Abnormal uterine contractions are clinically divided into uterine atony and uterine hypercontraction. Uterine atony refers to a condition in which uterine contractions do not increase as labor progresses, thereby prolonging labor. According to the time of occurrence, it can be divided into primary uterine atony (occurring at the beginning of labor) and secondary uterine atony (occurring after the cervix dilates 3 cm and enters the active phase). Uterine atony is affected by many factors including the general condition of the mother, such as excessive mental stress before delivery, excessive use of anesthetics or sedatives during surgery, excessive uterine distension (multiple births, macrosomia, polyhydramnios), uterine hypoplasia, severe anemia, and gestational hypertension. Weak uterine contractions are a problem that many women have encountered. The delay in opening of the cervix not only causes delayed labor, but also brings great harm to the pregnant woman and fetus, such as causing postpartum hemorrhage and increasing the chance of fetal intrauterine hypoxia and trauma.