Diagnosis of Perinatal Mortality

The death of a baby in the womb is confirmed by an ultrasound scan that shows whether the heart has stopped beating.

After the diagnosis of perinatal death, the medical team provides information about the birth options and various tests to be conducted.

If the mother's health is at risk, the recommendation is for labour to be induced as soon as possible so as not to endanger her health. If not, and the mother is stable, she can choose when to induce labour. Some couples find it comforting to spend some time at home after diagnosis.

There are different ways to induce labour and the method is adapted to each situation.

There is also the option of waiting for labour to start naturally. It must be kept in mind that delaying the onset of labour affects the baby’s appearance at birth; also, the tests carried out to find out why the death occurred provide less information. If this option is decided, frequent tests must be carried out on the mother as in a small percentage of cases she may be affected.

In general, a vaginal delivery is recommended. Although many mothers may initially consider a vaginal birth as unpleasant, it should be remembered that there are fewer risks this way, recovery is better, hospital discharge is earlier and future pregnancies are less likely to have complications. In exceptional cases, a caesarean section may be necessary.