Every pregnant woman wants to deliver at full term to ensure the baby is developed correctly. However, there are cases where signs of impending birth are shown at 38 weeks, which makes some mothers wonder if it is safe to deliver at this stage.
Is 38 Weeks Full Term?
In the past, the "term" pregnancy was used to refer to the period of giving birth in a five-week window around the due date. This falls between three weeks before and two weeks after or from the start of 37 weeks to the end of 42 weeks. It was previously believed that babies are ready for delivery anytime within this window. Most physicians used to assume that significant organ development was complete at this time and that babies collect additional pounds during the last weeks of pregnancy.
However, that is not the case since babies still have much to do at 37 and 38 weeks. Experts also discovered a clear connection between early-term deliveries and the number of babies in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), indicating just how important those last few are.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, full-term pregnancy lasts between 39 weeks, 0 days, and 40 weeks, six days. This means giving birth somewhere between one week before the due date or up to one week after.
Babies born during weeks 37 and 38 are considered early-term, and those born during week 41 are categorized as late-term. Meanwhile, deliveries at 42 weeks or later after the due date are considered post-term.
As Dason K. Baxter from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia describes, the lungs and the brain are not fully developed until 39 weeks. This means that the last few weeks are crucial to fetal development, and allowing elective early-term deliveries is now discouraged.
Risks of Delivery Before Full Term
Studies have shown that babies born by C-section before 39 weeks have more breathing difficulties and other complications than babies delivered after this period. Those delivered electively at 37 weeks are more likely to end up in the NICU or have severe respiratory conditions than babies who arrive at 39 weeks or later. Furthermore, babies born at 38 weeks are more likely to have organ complications.
Some mothers might be tempted to ask for an early induction at 38 weeks, but the final month is critical to the baby's health. Many early-term babies end up healthy, but others may experience complications that are less common for babies born closer to 40 weeks.
The baby's lungs contain surfactant, which helps them breathe independently. This compound, which reduces the risk of developing breathing problems once a baby is born, continues to be produced during the last month of pregnancy.
On the other hand, the baby's skin continues to thicken during the last weeks of pregnancy. At this point, the baby accumulates more body fat, which will aid in maintaining their body temperature once they get out of the mother's womb.
Brain development is also still underway while the baby is delivered. At 35 weeks, brain volume is only two-thirds of what is expected at 39 to 40 weeks. During these last weeks of pregnancy, significant brain and nerve connections are made to help the baby breathe, swallow, and suck once they are born.
It is important to note that a baby can still be healthy if the mother goes into labor early. In modern times, doctors and hospital staff are well-equipped to care for the mother and baby should the need arise. While delivering at least by 39 weeks is ideal, many facilities can care for babies born at early term with excellent results.
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