Preterm labor is when your body prepares to give birth too early, before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Premature labor does not always lead to birth. In some cases, your doctor can delay birth using medicines. In other instances, early labor stops on its own.
Sometimes, the safest option for your health and your baby's is to deliver early. A premature baby is at an increased risk of long-term, serious health problems.
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Preterm labor is when your body gets ready to give birth too early. During labor, the uterus contracts to open the cervix. This is the first stage of childbirth.
In most pregnancies, labor starts between 37 and 42 weeks. In preterm labor, labor begins between 20 and 37 weeks of pregnancy. When labor starts before 20 weeks, the pregnancy loss is considered a miscarriage.
Preterm labor does not always lead to preterm birth. Your body may stop labor on its own. Or your doctor may be able to stop preterm labor with medications.
When preterm labor doesn't stop, most people can deliver vaginally. In an emergency that threatens your health or your baby's health, you may need a C-section.
A baby born prematurely (too early) can have serious, long-term health problems. Among these problems are complications with the heart, lungs, or brain because many of the baby's organs aren't fully grown yet.
A premature baby also is at an increased risk of autism, intellectual disabilities, cerebral palsy, vision impairment, and hearing loss. The earlier a baby is born, the higher the risk of problems. However, many preterm babies will catch up to their full-term peers with time despite these risks.
The cause of preterm labor is often a problem involving the baby, the pregnant person, or both. Often, a mix of factors is responsible. Sometimes, pinpointing a specific cause of preterm labor can be hard.
Possible causes of preterm labor include:
You may be at a higher risk of preterm labor if you:
The only way to reduce your risk of preterm labor is to maintain healthy habits during pregnancy. A healthy pregnancy will also give your baby the best chance to be healthy.
To reduce your risk of preterm labor, you can try the following:
If you had preterm labor in a previous pregnancy, your risk of having it again is high. Your doctor may give you a hormone medicine called progesterone to lower your risk of preterm labor.
Progesterone does not prevent preterm birth in people pregnant with multiples. If you're pregnant with twins or more, your doctor won't typically give you progesterone, even if you had a previous preterm birth.
The symptoms of preterm labor include:
It can be hard to tell when labor starts. Watching for warning signs of early labor can greatly decrease your chances of early delivery. If you are experiencing preterm labor, contact your doctor right away.
If you notice one or more of the following symptoms, you may be going into labor:
If your contractions are mild and stop, they may have been Braxton Hicks. These are harmless and normal uterine tightenings that don't dilate the cervix. You can think of them as "warm-up" exercises for your uterus.
Preterm labor contractions will feel stronger, more painful, and more regular than Braxton Hicks contractions. They'll come closer together the longer you wait.
It can be difficult to tell the difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and actual labor. Braxton Hicks are more irregular, vary in strength, and are generally not painful. They often go away when you change position and are more noticeable when resting. They typically just feel uncomfortable and occur less than four times an hour.
If you're having more or stronger contractions than usual, try these things:
If your contractions are worse after these interventions, call your women's health provider or go to the hospital.
Call your prenatal care team if you're having symptoms of preterm labor. They'll ask you questions and determine if you need to go to the hospital.
If they're worried about preterm labor, they'll have you come to labor and delivery and monitor you and your baby. They'll check your cervix (the opening to your uterus) to see if it is starting to open.
Your doctor will check your baby's heartbeat and perform an ultrasound to check your amniotic fluid levels. If you are having contractions, your doctor will monitor their intensity and frequency.
Your doctor may conduct urine and blood tests to check for problems, like infections, that can cause preterm labor. They may check the fluid in your vagina to see if your water has broken.
Your doctor may swab the vagina for the protein fetal fibronectin. The presence of fetal fibronectin suggests you will deliver soon. The test can't tell for sure if you are about to have a preterm birth, though.
Your doctor won't always treat preterm labor. They will consider your health and your baby's age, weight, and health when deciding if they need to stop labor or prepare for delivery.
If preterm labor occurs in the 35th or 36th week, your doctor may be okay with you delivering. When you're this close to your due date, complications from preterm birth aren't usually serious.
Your doctor will compare the risk of early delivery with the risks of stopping labor. If your contractions are causing changes in your cervix, you have signs of infection, or your water has broken, they may give you medicine to help stop or delay delivery.
To stop preterm labor or delay delivery, your doctor may:
If your labor doesn't stop or your doctor thinks using tocolytics is too risky based on other health issues, they may start to prepare for your baby to be born.
To prepare for birth, your doctor may:
Last reviewed by a UPMC medical professional on 2024-09-05.
