Prenatal, Birth And Perinatal Development

Potential effects for babies born with syphilis are deafness, malformations of teeth and bones, facial deformities, excess fluid in the brain, and mental retardation.

The prenatal period takes place in the first two weeks of conception. Heredity and environmental influences (which are often negative) are also developed during this stage. At this stage the organism is more susceptible to these influences, than during any other period. Infancy is the next stage, various changes start to occur and attachments start to form. Coordination, sensory and motor skills start to develop, as well as the expression of

E1- Summarise the factors which may influence the health and development of babies in the first year of their lives

As previously mentioned, environmental factors, such as exposure to taratogens, can affect the development of the unborn child. Broderick and Blewitt (2105) define a teratogen as “substances or agents that can cross the placental barrier and produce fetal deformities when taken or absorbed by the mother during pregnancy” (p.619). These substances include drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, pollution, stress hormones, poor nutrition, and diseases, such as AIDS. Consumption of drugs and/or alcohol can lead to low birth weight, as well as, physical, cognitive, and behavioral abnormalities. Furthermore, more recent studies are showing that exposure to pollutants can affect an individual’s development. For example, a study of the

There are many issues that are associated with women and children. The most essential issues are chemical exposure, social exposure and diet. Chemical exposure affect the human biochemical process that helps with human functioning. Also, chemical exposure affect children involuntarily through their mothers and the environment that they are surrounded by. Chemical exposure affects the development of a growing child’s organs and body system. Obesity has been an ongoing problem and will continue to be in the future (Kotch, 2013). For the mother and fetus, obesity can have a negative effect. Such as, diabetes, preeclampsia and after giving birth heart disease and hypertension in mothers. In the fetus, the risk are stillbirth and other inherited

Fetuses undergo very important changes in the womb as they grow into full grown babies, and many factors can influence the way the fetus develops. Maternal stress, depression, and anxiety can have adverse effects on the fetus’ neurobehavioral development. In this review, the effects of the mother’s psychological state on the developing fetus will be discussed. Constant exposure to stress and/or depression can cause the fetus’ brain development to be effected, which can follow that person for the rest of their life. The prenatal period in a person’s life is one of the most crucial times in neurodevelopment, and it is also one of the most vulnerable periods they will encounter. Children who are exposed to maternal stress and/or depression

The phases of human development can also be culturally defined through lifestyle aspects such as diet and exposure to disease. The postnatal stage of child development is crucial to the growth of the child and through survival aspects of different cultures, children develop at different rates in different ways to increase chance of survival. As researched by Anthropologist Barbara Piperata, "In Brazil's Amazon River basin the suboptimal nutrition and exposure to infectious disease have resulted in less-than-optimal growth." The childrens exposure to disease it lowers the growth rates compared to American children. When Piperata compared Brazilian boys and girls, "the males are more sensitive to environmental insult." This is a possibility

Cephalopelvic disproportion (CPD) is a condition that occurs when the head of a fetus is unable to pass through the birthing canal. There are several factors that contribute to CPD, some of which are: maternal size, postmature birth, and various conditions which affect the genital tract of the mother. CPD affects the mother, and her family, in both physical and psychological manners. Nursing care for CPD should include frequent monitoring of the mother and fetus, and must be holistic in nature.

An estimated 12% of babies are born prematurely, with approximately 1,4% are born at 32 weeks or earlier and weigh less than 1500 grams. Premature babies will continuously face a significant risk of severe neurodevelopmental problems, such as language and cognitive delays; permanent neurosensory impairments; motor deficits; learning disabilities; socioemotional and neurobehavioral issues (Browne, 2003). Developmental care during the last several weeks of gestation positively influence neurodevelopmental functioning as research on cognitive development and brain volume abnormalities has shown that a premature birth can disrupt the fetal brain development, which then reduces the reginal cortical volumes most prominently in the sensorimotor regions (Tessier et al., 2009). Major impairments are most likely to occur in much younger and smaller premature babies and many of the underlying deficits can lead to difficulties in school for those who were born in need of the NICU, such as neurodevelopmental and socioemotional issues. These may include speech and language disorders, neuromotor disorders, cognitive delays, and perceptual issues, these difficulties may continue into adolescence and young adulthood. The youngest survivors, at approximately 28 weeks gestation or earlier, face a 25% chance of permanent impairment in one or more functioning area, whereas, babies born at 32 weeks have less than an 8% chance of an irreversible impairment (Browne, 2003).

This increases the cost of care not just at birth but continues through life. This babies require longer hospitalizations, special equipment, treatments and medicines, as well as special education and accommodation (March of Dimes Foundation,

As future school nurses, fetal development could be an educational topic that would great benefit high schoolers. As you mentioned in your text, the fetus, children, and young adult are “susceptible to a number of environmental factors including drugs, chemicals, infections, and physical factors…because the brain is still maturing.” Nowadays, we see an increase in pregnancy and drug abuse on teenager population, and they would benefit to know risks factors, safe measurements necessaries to prevent any anomaly even before conception, and drug and chemical effect on the brain because would empower the students to make responsible choices about sexual relationship and life style.

There are many factors believed to be responsible for the presentation of autism that occur prenatally and are directly affected by characteristics of the mother’s behavior during her pregnancy. The fetal environment for a growing embryo is incredibly important. Since the embryo acts as a protective shield to the baby and a place for nurturance and growth, any alterations to that development can be detrimental. The embryo is affected by many different actions the mother does, like gain a significant amount of weight during pregnancy. Weight gain has the ability to be a significant risk factor for the growing fetus (Bilder et al., 2013). The production of steroids in utero is vital to a healthy development and excessive weight gain disturbs this natural production and exchange between the baby and the mother (Bilder et al., 2013). Previous studies have looked at the BMI of a woman before becoming pregnant, and have found that a BMI of over 30 is considered a risk factor for ASD. Bilder et al. (2013) looked specifically at gaining weight during pregnancy and the risk factors involved related to ASD. There appears to be a significant risk for autism spectrum disorders and weight gain during pregnancy (Bilder et al., 2013). There are many reasons a woman may gain more than the recommended weight during her pregnancy, and stress can certainly play a large role in this.

Development of a fetus in the womb is a remarkable period of rapid growth and creation for the young life to be. There are a myriad of outside forces that can influence the advancement of the zygote in its journey from fertilized egg to blastocyst, embryo and fetus. These outside forces can have profound implications for the mind and body of the young life both immediate and throughout the lifespan. Exposure to these environmental hazards can come from many different sources, some known and predominantly understood, others are not. These all can lead to vastly different outcomes for the child while in utero and after birth. To be able to fully understand the mechanics of fetal development, the outside hazards that can influence its growth

The fetal stage is the stage in which is marked by rapid growth and preparation

Approximately 150,000 babies born in the United States every year are affected by birth defects, at least 25 percent of those birth defects are environmentally caused (Birth Defects Statistics). Not only do birth defects affect thousands of babies, other developmental problems such as low birth weight and preterm labor also have an effect on a staggering number of children. Some developmental problems and birth defects are unavoidable, but environmentally caused issues can and should be prevented. Factors that are considered to be environmental include smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol, using illegal drugs, taking prescription medications, having infectious diseases or sexually transmitted diseases, and having poor nutrition. Environmental factors can cause birth defects and developmental complications, but due to the limited amount of treatments, making appropriate nutrition and lifestyle decisions during pregnancy can prevent these detrimental issues.