Smoking to blame for premature births

Most Waikato women have no pregnancy problems, Mike Mather reports . Smoking during pregnancy has been linked to a higher-than-average number of premature births in the Waikato District Health Board area.

The trend is one of several highlighted in a new report revealing that while there are areas of concern, most Waikato women have no problems with their pregnancies.

The report’s findings spurred a meeting of the Waikato Midwifery Collaborative to discuss how best to improve the statistics, including the 10 per cent of babies born prematurely at Waikato Hospital.

The national average for premature births at hospitals is 6.7 per cent.

Midwife Gina Chaney said women who smoke should quit as soon as they learned they were pregnant.

‘‘Smoking is harmful to the blood vessels of the placenta, lowering the oxygen and food supply to the growing baby,’’ she said.

‘‘It is never too late to give up smoking in pregnancy.

‘‘By quitting, the woman can help reduce the risk of premature birth, sudden infant death syndrome, stillbirth and low birth weight,’’ Ms Chaney said.

‘‘Quitting can also reduce the risk of the placenta detaching from the womb, causing the death of the baby and serious risk to the mother because of blood loss.’’

Smoking in pregnancy was also linked to lifelong effects on the baby’s brain, like learning disorders and picture than a recent report on the deaths of newborn babies in New Zealand by the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee.

That report found a ‘‘significantly higher rate’’ of neonatal encephalopathy (NE) – a syndrome usually resulting from lack of oxygen to the brain around the time of birth – among babies born in Waikato.

There were 2.25 deaths per 1000 births at term in Waikato, compared with 1.27 deaths nationally.

The new report compares health boards across the country by analysing the births of first-time mothers who are fit and healthy, clinical midwife director Corli Roodt said. ‘‘It is never too late to give up smoking in pregnancy.’’ behaviour problems, she said.

The Maternity Clinical Indicators report’s findings were mostly positive. Eight out of 10 women aged between 20 and 34 had an uncomplicated pregnancy and birth in the Waikato region.

In comparison with other district health boards, the Waikato DHB was doing better than the national average of seven out of 10, placing it in the top five nationwide.

The figures also paint a different

‘‘Waikato is a good district to be a firsttime mum as there are so many excellent primary birthing facilities, such as the Thames Birthing Unit or River Ridge East.

‘‘These facilities keep low-risk mothers out of Waikato Hospital, which is the secondary/tertiary provider for the entire Midland region.’’

Births that were referred to the hospital included premature babies requiring intensive monitoring and care, multiple births such as twins and triplets and very sick women, such as those with high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiac issues, or who had experienced problems with a previous birth.

The earlier NE report focused on a very small number of babies, she said.

‘‘It is unknown at this stage why Waikato has slightly higher numbers.’’