Little to No Amniotic Fluid

[landonadia]

I am about four months pregnant now and a week ago when I came home for a nice nap, I awake to what I thought was my water breaking. I rushed to the hospital, whom confirmed, my suspicions. My water had reaptured at only four months. When the doctor did a ultrasound test, it was stated that the baby only had very little amniotic fluid around it, and it would be in our best interest to call this baby a lost. I asked the doctor was it possible for the membrane to reseal itself, and was informed that it was highly unlikely. My baby heartbeat is excellent, per what the doctor's say. I have had no signs of contractions, pains, or infections, thusfar. I am still believing that somehow this baby is meant to be. I am posting this thread to see if there is anything that I can do to regenerate fluid around the baby so that his/her lungs can develop? Also, if there are any mothers out there that have experienced the same thing, what is your story? Also, I am a diabetic and have high blood pressure. Please assist.

[kellym]

OMG, that is horrible. I am soo sorry to hear that and hope they tend to you so that you can keep that baby. I wish you the best and lots of Prayers.
Kellie

[peekawho]

I'm sorry to hear that this has happened to you.

It's possible, although unlikely, that there will still be a good outcome from this scenario.  Very occasionally, a small leak or tear in the membrane might seal over and the fluid might reaccumulate.

Your biggest, immediate danger is infection.  The fact that a week has passed without problems is encouraging right now.   Infection can threaten your future fertility and even your life, so its very important that you are being monitored closely for early signs and symptoms of such.  

A danger furthur off, assuming the pregnancy continues and the water does NOT reaccumulate, is hypoplastic lungs.  This means the lungs have not developed at all.  A fetus needs normal amniotic fluid volumes to develop their lungs.  If the fluid remains critically low and the pregnancy continues, the infant may be born, but be totally unable to breathe, even with all our modern technology.  There is simply no way to quickly grow lungs that failed to develop from this devastating complication.  Hypoplastic lungs are a particularly great risk the earlier your water breaks or leaks in the pregnancy.  If the water breaks later in pregnancy, the lungs have already formed, and the danger is much less.  

Furthermore, if your water has leaked or broken and you do not have enough amniotic fluid, the baby often develops contraction deformities from the loss of the cushion surrounding him/her.  If the baby survives, these can be devastating and crippling.  

The best case scenario would be that the leak is small, the sac seals over quickly, and the amniotic fluid reaccumulates.  If you continue to actively leak, there is no way to hold the amniotic fluid inside, much like a water filled balloon that has been pierced with a small needle--the fluid will continually drain out.  So in this case, there is no way to make the fluid reaccumulate.
However, if the sac seals over right away, in a short time the fluid may accumulate on its own and levels may be restored to normal.  

If you choose to continue the pregnancy, your doctor will closely follow your pregnancy with many ultrasounds and other tests to watch the amniotic fluid volume, and to try to detect infection early.

Whether or not you choose to continue this pregnancy will be a decision best made by you and your partner after careful consideration of all the risks, both to you and to the baby.    

I hope that I have not been too blunt, but you deserve an honest answer.  Please let us know what happens.  All our prayers are with you.  

[Bri07]

It is possible.  With my son, my water broke and resealed.  In fact when I was in labor, they had to actually artificially rupture it 2 more times!  There are miracles, as I am now 30 weeks pregnant with my daughter and my water broke and leaked for a week before resealing, at 22 weeks.  My high risk doctor said they'd be surprised if I carried her to 32 weeks as I have been in preterm labor 3 times and have had to have it stopped! So, there is hope!  If it's in God will for you to have this baby, you will!  Everything happens for a reason!  I know this because I have been in active labor for several weeks now, and still she is holding on in there!  So trust!  If you loose your baby, you did nothing wrong! There are people that are there for you no matter the outcome!  I hope it works out for you!

Take Care,

Bri

[shonee]

I am currently 24 weeks pregnant and apparently havent had any fluid since about 15 or 16 weeks.  The prognosis is very poor.  But we have chosen not to terminate, believing that miracles do occur and not wanted to count ourselves out from receiving one.  But the doctors have pretty much told me the same thing.  They are at a point now where they are just trying pinpoint a diagnosis.
Keep your faith, and dont give up on your child.

[bindare]

Last year around this time, I was in the exact situation that you are in. I was 16 wks along when I found that that I too had no amniotic fluid. I think I had less then 10 cc's doctors could not figure out what had went wrong they had insisted that my water had broken, but it didn't, doctors think it may have been an implantation problem. Anyways, the doctors asked me if I would like to terminate the pregnancy because my baby had a ten percent chance of survival.
I was distraught, I could not bare the thought of terminating my pregnancy because I could feel him moving in my belly. My husband said a 10% chance is better than a 0%, I kept this as my model as I continued the pregnancy. Over the weeks my pregnancy continued to be filled with distress and agony over the bad news that I would receive at each doctors visit. It seemed as if I had no luck, I would sit in the bed and barely move, and drink buckets of water and my situation still wouldn't improve. I finally gave the it all to God, I said lord what ever you decide.
At 26 wks after a month in the hospital I gave birth to a baby boy named Aiden, we chose this name because it ment little fire. He was  one pound 14 oz and really sick, one lung was significantly smaller than the other but he had no contractions. His attendant said he may get sicker by the end of the day, and he was right. He was born at 12:00 noon and by the night he was fighting for his life. Doctors said that he had hypoplastic lungs and that he would not make it through the night.
Aiden was on the stongest ventilator and under a 100% oxygen, and the were also bagiing him by hand, doctors said they can do no more, and asked me if we can put do not resesitate paper work for him, and they wanted to stop bagging him. It physically hurt me to allow this to happen, but eventually I agreed to let nature take its course, and let him go.
Once I agreed to stop all the life support the doctor said you have made a wise choice to do this. He then said that before we completely stop the life support, that he would like to try giving him nitric oxcide, which is a treatment that they use on older babies. He said that most likely it would not work, and that probably he would still be leaving us later on in the night, but that it at this time it was worth a try. We decided to go for it, but with absolutely no expectations.
To our and the doctors surprise he made it through the night. Unfortunently his better develop lung collapsed the following day, and we were then again facing the same scenerio of loosing him. But thank the lord he made it, he spent five long months living in the nicu, and has just gotten off of oxygen.
So as you continue through this rocky road  just know that miracles happen everyday, and that all though doctors know alot, they do not know more than God. Oh! and one more thing, pray,pray, pray,pray, becuase prayer is stronger than medicine.


Sincerly:
Bindare

[allip68]

I am so sorry to read your post and I pray things have turned around.  I read in my pregnancy book that doctors might suggest an amnioinfusion ("in which fluid levels are augmented with sterile saline").   Best wishes for you and your baby.

[tisha655]

hey sorry to hear about whats going on with your baby, about two months ago i went thru the same thing i was 5 months.i hold out til i was 6 months unfortunately his lungs not developed at all so he struggle 4 about a week then he passed, it was a little boy but there is ther is hope so hold he/she just might a fighter.

[NicuMom]

Do not give up hope!  I was also in the same situation this year.

I lost my fluid at week 16-17 in my pregnancy. The Dr could not see any fluid on any of my ultrasounds after this point.  My son was born by emergency c section at 26 weeks.  My son is still in the Nicu almost 4 months after his birth, but he is doing really well now.  THE DR TOLD US THIS WEEK THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO TAKE HIM HOME SOON!!  He will probably have to go home on oxygen, but after all he has been through that is not a big deal at all.

It has not been easy.  We were told several times that he would not live and he almost died a couple of times, but he is a strong little boy and is now doing really well.  He also has had to deal with a heart defect that is completely unrelated to having no fluid, but even after all that he is still doing really well.  All the Drs and nurses are amazed at how well my son is doing now.

It is truly a miracle from God that my son is doing so well!  I thank God every day that he has watched over my son.  

[Tina413]

Hello, I have a question for anyone who may have an answer. I was pregnant three years ago and had a miscarriage. After I lost the baby, the doctors told me that my body did not produce any amniotic fluid at all. But I never got a follow up from the doctors as to why, due to the fact that I have no health insurance now. Can anyone please tell me why a body wouldnt produce this fluid? Thank you.

[Polly_Pinhead]

at less then 16 wks i had ultrasounds confirm my baby has no fluid. i am now 24 wks along. docs keep saying he is going to die and that his lungs won't develop but they can give you sterroids and try to get him to develop them. my baby is growing to term and developing but they can't see anything on ultrasound...they have something called amnioinfusion which my doc doesn't want to do. But i read a story about a 16 yr old girl who didn't have any fluid and was given weekly infusions and had a healthy baby..i'm about to flip on these docs...

i've haven't had any leaking or bleeding my entire pregnancy and also have a subchorionic bleed.

[natly_009]

I am 14 weeks pregnant and since fallling pregnant ive bleed non stop, the docs told me not to worry bwt the bleeding as they cudnt find where it was cuming from, yesterday i went for my first scan and was told there is no fluid wat so ever around my baby, i am devistated, the doc told me to prepar myself for a mis-carrige in the next to two weeks as its more then likly my baby will not survive, so for me its now a waiting game, i cannot sleep, eat or anything because all i think bwt is my baby dying, i feel lil twinges but lyk the doc says theres a 2% chance ov survival, i jus hope tha the lord will be gud to me and save my baby!

[gembo46]

Hi
I went for my 20 week scan and they found that the baby had only 1.3 cm of fluid when it should be 4-5cm at this stage. I had to wait for a consultant appointment as our hospital is rubbish and short staffed we waited 9 day's when we went to consultant last week and she checked my baby girl everything is fine with growth and no defects at all etc she had just over 1 cm of fluid so she booked me in the following day to try the amniotic infusion but was unsuccessfull as baby had no fluid there at all (only what she is now useing to wee ) so wasnt enough there as she has to have fluid around her to inject the other fluid to, they annoyed me as my consultant said she knew she could have done it the day before so i thought well why the hell didnt you then. I then was told by her to wait another 7 days as she was off and had clinics she couldnt see me before and she would try it again the following thursday i woke up friday very angry and pushed for it to be done earlier as i feel let down so she agreed to see me this tuesday 29th sept she wasnt confident in trying the procedure again as still no fluid and she referred me to kings colleage in london which are the best my consultant basically told me to prepare for the worst as they will tell us how it is and that i will probabley have to terminate our baby caitlyne who is now 23 weeks but i went to see the specialist yesturday 30th they scanned me again as if i havent been scanned before and is confirmed there is no fluid but all checks are fine and baby is fine in every way she is growing like she should be and has no problems the only thing they can think has happened is that in the last 2-3 wks my membranes jave ruptured but they cant tell us that for sure now as they can replug but not likeley she will get the fluid back now so she is useing the small amount she has . The specialist said yesturday she isnt asking us to give up on her at all and she has seen this before and if we carry out with the pregnancy there is a 50/50 chance she will survive, they cant tell us if the lungs are working on an ultrasound at all we will only know if the lungs have started to mature when she comes out, they have said the y will give me the steroids nearer the time to me having her and hope that if the lungs have started to form inside they will help and then they can carry on with teh steroids and other machines to help her. But if the lungs havent started at all inside me when she leaves me she wont be able to breathe so they wont be able to bring her back.
I am now open to infection which can bring on early labour and complications but we feel that whilst there i sthat 50/50 chance we have to take it, if my old consultant had her way i could have terminated her last week or this week and not know really why and have to live with that forever and the not knowing,, i feel i have to just go with it and pray she will be ok i know it is going to be very very hard and she isnt going to be like a normal baby at the start but i hope with the best care she will get through it but i also know i have to prepare for the fact that i can carry on and she maybe growing inside me fine but that she may come out and not be alive but i feel if i do it this way i have tried everything and given her every chance and i have read some stories where they do come out of it ok in the end some people loose fluid way before i have and the lungs have part formed and babies have survived so i have to hold onto that i wa stold the lungs dont form untill after 24wks yet some people have lost there fluid at 16-17weeks and the babies born at 26wks they still have lungs there that are formed just not to there full ? does anyone have any advice or stories please??

[kpay]

Thank you both so much for sharing your stories. I am 21 weeks and at 19 weeks the doctors saw no fluid. My babys heartbeat is strong andI am believing God for a miracle everyday. You have strengthened my faith and pushed my hope into over drive. Ipray all is well for your families. When my little one is born I will celebrate with your triumphs. Blees u.

[Godslittleangel_0410]

Well much like every one else's situation, I just found out on Tuesday that my water broke and I'm only 16 weeks.  Although the doctors tell me that it was bound to happen, I am at a complete loss because I called my doctor to complain about a mucous like discharge before it even happened and she didnt seem to see a cause for concern.  I took her for her word, and then the next day, my water broke while using the bathroom.  Turns out all of my fluid had leaked out and there is nothing surrounding the baby.  However, the baby's heartbeat is still strong (at least it was last time the doctors checked).  I am so devastated because this is our first child and I feel so empty and lost.  They seem to be concerned with me developing an infection if I choose to continue or causing severe abnormalities/malformations with the baby.  I along with all of my family and friends have been praying but I'm so scared and I can't help but wonder if this is it.  I wake up everyday and I feel so lost and confused.  I just want my baby to live but I'm also trying to face a harsh reality.  The other issue is that I will either have to deliver the baby or have a d&c procedure.  I can't imagine the trauma of delivering a child that you will not even be able to take home. I'm justd praying to God for his mercy and that he allows me to hold on to my mind because I sometimes feel short of losing it.  There's no other feeling like the loss of a child and though everyone tries to reassure you that it's not your fault and nothing you could have done to cause it, I still can't help but wonder what I could have done differently or where I went wrong.  My husband is even more afraid because he is absolutely against risking my life as well as the baby's life.  He couldn't bare the loss of both of us. It seems like such a selfish, helpless situation.  I believe in God and I know that it is his will in the end but it doesn't help the pain or emptiness.  I am just believing that I will eventually come out of this a stronger person, and no matter what the outcome is, maybe I will find the strength to try again.