What to do if there is too much amniotic fluid during pregnancy

If the amount of amniotic fluid in a pregnant woman exceeds 200 ml during pregnancy, it can be defined as polyhydramnios. Under normal circumstances, the incidence of this phenomenon is only between 0.5% and 1%. If the amount of amniotic fluid continues to increase in a pregnant woman's body, it is called acute polyhydramnios. If the amount of amniotic fluid increases slowly over a long period of time, it is called chronic polyhydramnios. So what should you do if you have too much amniotic fluid? Let’s find out together.

Important methods to solve excessive amniotic fluid :

Daily care

Pregnant women with excessive amniotic fluid need to ensure a low-salt diet and reduce their water intake. Rest in bed more often, lying on your left side, to improve uterine placental circulation and prevent premature birth. The amniotic fluid index and fetal growth should be checked every week.

Medical treatment

The treatment of polyhydramnios mainly depends on whether the fetus has any malformations, the gestational age, and the severity of the compression symptoms of the pregnant woman. If polyhydramnios is diagnosed, the doctor will generally request a high-definition B-ultrasound examination to see if the fetus has any malformations; amniocentesis may also be performed to see if the fetus has any genetic defects. At the same time, during the remaining pregnancy, regular fetal heart monitoring and B-ultrasound examinations are needed to closely monitor the growth and development of the fetus.

If there is polyhydramnios and fetal malformations, the pregnancy needs to be terminated, usually by artificial rupture of membranes. If the fetus is normal, the following measures should be taken for treatment:

1. Amniocentesis decompression : For patients with severe compression symptoms, short gestational age, and immature fetal lungs, transabdominal amniocentesis can be considered to relieve symptoms and prolong gestational age.

2. Treatment with prostaglandin synthase inhibitors : Indomethacin 2.2-2.4 mg/(kg·d), orally taken in 3 divided doses. Indomethacin has an inhibitory diuretic effect and can inhibit fetal urination to reduce the amount of amniotic fluid. However, while taking the medication, the changes in amniotic fluid volume and fetal heart rate should be closely observed. If the amount of amniotic fluid decreases significantly or the ductus arteriosus is narrowed, the medication should be stopped immediately.

3. Etiological treatment : If the polyhydramnios is caused by pregnancy complicated with diabetes, blood sugar needs to be suppressed; if the polyhydramnios is caused by maternal and fetal blood insolubility, the fetus is not yet mature and has edema, or the umbilical cord blood shows Hb<60g/L, fetal intrauterine blood transfusion should be considered.

4. Management during delivery : After natural labor, artificial rupture of membranes should be performed as soon as possible. If uterine contractions are still weak after rupture of membranes, low-concentration oxytocin can be given intravenously to enhance uterine contractions, and the progress of labor should be closely observed. Uterine contractions should be used promptly after the fetus is delivered to prevent postpartum hemorrhage.