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UPSC MACROSOMIA - English

Two-foot-tall infant weighing almost 8kg, born in Brazil: Get to know macrosomia, the condition that creates gigantic babies

Context: A mother in Brazil recently gave birth to a two-foot-tall baby weighing 16lb (7.3kg). 

About Macrosomia:

The term used to describe these giant babies is macrosomia (Greek for the large body). Any baby that weighs more than 4kg, regardless of its gestational age, is said to have macrosomia.

Factors that cause Macrosomia:

• Body weight of the mother. Obese mothers tend to have kinds with Macrosomia.
• In mothers with gestational diabetes (high blood sugar that arises during pregnancy), this increases to between 15 per cent and 45 per cent of births.
• Being older when pregnant also increases the odds of having a baby with macrosomia.
• Previous pregnancies increase the risk of macrosomia because, with each successive pregnancy, birth weight increases.
• Overdue pregnancies – those that run past the typical 40 weeks – also increase the risk of a baby being macrosomic, particularly at 42 weeks or more.
• Having a boy increases the likelihood of macrosomia. Boys are three times more likely than girls to be born macrosomic.

  Issues:

• Babies with macrosomia are more likely to encounter difficulties moving through the birth canal because of their large size.
• “Shoulder dystocia” – which may cause permanent harm to shoulders. While the baby is stuck, it cannot breathe and the umbilical cord may be squeezed.
• Mothers are also at increased risk of vaginal tears during delivery, which then increases the risk of postpartum haemorrhage (bleeding)

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