Stillbirths study hope for mums
Six years ago, Laura Rowney’s baby stopped moving in her womb.
At the time, Rowney thought it was because the baby, Hazel Karina, had grown and had no space to move around.
She went into labour the next day at 37 weeks and four days. But as her daughter was monitored during labour, medical staff couldn’t find a heartbeat and Hazel – Rowney’s first child – was stillborn.
‘‘For as long as I live, I don’t think I’ll get over the fact my child died,’’ she said.
‘‘I have learned to give her little life meaning. I live every day for her, to give her life purpose and that helps me.’’
Her children, aged five, four and 18 months, have been told about their older sister and friends and family help keep her memory alive.
Rowney believed discussing stillbirths and miscarriages helped expand understanding.
Hutt midwife and PhD student Billie Bradford has recently completed research into stillbirths, finding women who report their unborn baby is ‘‘quieter’’ in the evening are at significantly increased risk.
In the womb, a baby is described as ‘‘quiet’’ when they move less and those movements are weaker than normal.
Bradford wants to increase awareness so that those mums-tobe seek help as early as possible.
‘‘If we do more research around time of day and normal patterns we might get better at assessing women who are concerned about movements and hopefully save babies’ lives.’’
There were 305 stillbirths in New Zealand in 2015.
‘‘That might sound like a small number but that’s 10 classrooms of kids. That’s about one stillbirth per 190 live births. The impact on families is huge.’’
Bradford was one of the researchers from the University of Auckland collaborating on the Multi-Centre Stillbirth Study.
The study was conducted across seven DHBs and explored potential risk factors for stillbirths.
Researchers interviewed 164 women who had a stillbirth at 28 weeks or later, as well as 569 control women at the same stage with an ongoing pregnancy.
Bradford said they were trying to learn what was different about a baby’s movement in women who had a stillbirth.
Previous studies had shown a decrease in both the frequency and strength of movement were associated with an increased risk of late stillbirth.
Bradford’s research built on that, finding women who reported their babies were ‘‘quiet’’ in the evening had a more than threefold increased risk of stillbirth. Evening was a time when babies were usually more active.
‘‘Babies in the womb tend to be a bit like newborns. They’re party animals – they have little naps during the day and then want to stay up late at night.’’
The majority of stillbirths were normally formed and in almost a third of cases, the reason for the death was unexplained, she said.
Both pregnant women and bereaved mothers taking part in the study reported they were glad to be involved in something that could help women in the future.
Babies in the womb tend to be a bit like newborns. They’re party animals . . . Billie Bradford