Posts Tagged ‘March of Dimes’

A recent study conducted by the March of Dimes and BabyCenter, showed that health care providers are not talking to moms early enough about preterm birth. Only 1 in 4 women surveyed had received information about preterm labor before they reached their 2^nd trimester. Providers stated that they didn’t want the moms to have unnecessary fear and anxiety. At our Premature Infant Health Network meeting in July, we had a mother tell her story about when she delivered her extremely premature baby. No one had told her about the symptoms of preterm labor or that it was a possibility even in healthy pregnancies. I would imagine that she was experiencing more fear than if she had been informed beforehand. 

Knowing about the risks for preterm birth is important for all moms. Some risk factors should be managed before a woman becomes pregnant or early during her pregnancy. Some moms in the study were not told that having a previous premature birth would put them at risk for it to happen again. 

If you would like to learn more about preterm labor read our past blog posts Risks for Preterm Labor and Preterm Labor Can Happen to You .

Local pregnant women or moms who recently had a baby: when did your doctor or midwife talk to you about preterm labor?  How did learning about preterm labor make you feel?

Source: New Survey Reveals Communication about Preterm Birth is Too Little, Too Late

This year’s Pertussis Awareness Day, August 5^th, was celebrated with NASCAR star Jeff Gordon. Jeff teamed up with March of Dimes and Sanofi Pasteur to promote the Pertussis Awareness campaign and contest, Sound off about Pertussis. This is an educational song and video contest that uses the power of music to help educate people about pertussis, more commonly known as whooping cough, and the importance of adult pertussis vaccination. If you would like more details about this contest, visit Sound off about Pertussis .

Why should you be concerned about Whooping Cough (Pertussis)?

Pertussis is a very contagious bacterial infection that causes cold-like symptoms which leads to severe coughing. In many cases, especially in babies, pertussis can lead to hospitalization, pneumonia, convulsions, even death! Babies are at a higher risk because they may not have received their complete DTaP vaccination yet. For maximum protection against pertussis, children need five DTaP shots. The first three shots are given at 2, 4, and 6 months of age. The fourth shot is given between 15 and 18 months of age, and a fifth shot is given when a child enters school, at 4–6 years of age. Parents can also help protect infants by keeping them away as much as possible from anyone who has cold symptoms or is coughing.

To hear what Pertussis sounds like, visit Sounds of Pertussis

Are you going to enter the contest? We’d be happy to hear all about your epxerience.

Source: CDC Features: Pertussis (Whooping Cough) – What you need to know ; Sound off about Pertussis