Sex soon after giving birth can be fatal
Having sex within one week after giving birth can be dangerous and even
fatal, British doctors warned on Thursday. Intercourse too soon after childbirth can cause
a deadly air embolism, or bubble, in a blood vessel, a risk that remains for six weeks
after birth while the mother's womb is returning to normal and the spot where the placenta
was attached is healing. "It can be fatal. It is very, very rare," Dr Philip
Batman said in a telephone interview. "It does happen and obstetricians should be
aware of it." The pathologist at the Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust, in Northern
England, added that most couples probably wouldn't want to resume sex within a week of
having a child, but they should know about the dangers if they do.
Death during sex does not occur often. When it does, it
usually involves middle-aged men with heart problems. But in a study published in the
monthly Postgraduate Medical Journal, Batman and his colleagues described the cases of two
young mothers from northern England who died within a two-year period as a result of
making love shortly after having a child. A 22-year-old woman suddenly collapsed and died
while having sex with her husband eight days after delivering her third child. The second
woman, a 29-year-old with four children, suffered a similar death five days after giving
birth. Both deaths were caused by air embolism. The researchers said the six-week interval
after childbirth is particularly important because the wall of the uterus where the
placenta was attached during pregnancy is raw, with gaping blood vessels that take a week
or more to heal. "In that period of time if air is forced into the uterus (womb) it
tends to pass into this raw lining and the air bubbles pass into the mother's circulation
which is potentially fatal," Batman explained.
The sexual position, particularly if the womb is raised above the right side of the heart
during intercourse, can increase the danger of air embolism because it allows air to be
sucked into the body as the heart contracts. "That position is more dangerous,"
Batman advised. Air embolism affects the flow of blood from the heart. It causes
breathlessness, chest discomfort and sometimes heart failure. An embolism can be caused by
surgery, Caesarian section or an intravenous drip into the arm. A national review of
maternal deaths in Britain from 1967 to 1993 covering 20 million pregnancies found 18
deaths due to air embolism.
Cot death campaign highlights dangers
of duvets
A British charity joined forces on Thursday with
the world's biggest furniture chain to warn parents that duvets and quilts can double the
risk of cot deaths. Despite international research that has proven the dangers of using
the bedding with infants under one year old, very few parents and expectant mothers are
aware that the products could kill their babies.
Cot death, or sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), is the leading cause of death for young
babies in developed countries. "We were stunned by the results of a survey that
showed only five percent of pregnant women and new mothers knew that duvets and quilts
increased the risk of cot death," Joyce Epstein, of The Foundation for the
Study of Infant Deaths, told a news conference on Thursday. To highlight the dangers the
foundation launched a campaign with Ikea, the privately controlled Swedish furniture
company that supplies furniture, cots, bedding and toys in their stores throughout the
world. "There are so many products available and parents are understandably confused
about what is safe for babies and, more to the point, what is not," said Epstein.
"We call on all manufacturers to follow this lead," she added.
To alleviate any confusion, Ikea will label all of its
products that could be dangerous for young children. A large sticker saying "Only buy
this for me when I'm 1" will appear on duvets, quilts and pillows. IKEA stores
throughout Britain will encourage the use of sheets and blankets instead. Donna Faulkner,
of Ikea, said the British campaign could be the first of many. The company, which has 143
stores around the world and is planning to open nine in Russia and one in Beijing in the
next two years, is already considering similar strategies in other countries.
Doctors are not sure what causes the mysterious syndrome in which seemingly healthy
infants stop breathing. Research has linked the illness to a variety of causes such as
lying an infant down to sleep on its stomach, smoking by parents and sleeping on an old
mattress. It usually occurs between the ages of one and four months and is more prevalent
in boys than girls. Parents are encouraged to make sure the child's face is uncovered and
that the infant sleeps on his back, following research that showed the position decreased
the incidence of cot deaths.