By Jill Glassco, Austin, TX USAI knew that I would have a high risk pregnancy because my doctor had always told me I would probably need a cerclage due to a short and possibly incompetent cervix. Luckily, I have a very proactive doctor and had not had a prior loss due to incompetent cervix. I had a permanent Shirodkar cerclage (requiring a c-section) placed when I was 13 weeks pregnant. I remember my perinatologist telling me that this would create a higher risk of PROM, but I never dreamed it would happen to me!
PROM at 29 weeks + 2 days. Delivery at 35 weeks + 3 days.
Story added: 2003-12-17
After two weeks of bedrest I had no restrictions and no problems until 29w2d, when I noticed some fluid loss. Thinking I had developed "pregnancy incontinence" I was sure it was nothing, but went to the doctor just in case. He informed me that I had ruptured and admitted me to the hospital where I had steroid shots and antibiotics. I was on hospital bedrest for 6 weeks, with non-stress tests twice daily and ultrasounds twice weekly. My fluid levels varied but over time seemed to reaccummulate somewhat. I hunkered down, learned to knit and tried to appreciate each and every day that my baby stayed inside me.
Delivery was planned for 35w4d, but the day before things started getting weird. I felt less movement and my baby didn't have the required accelerations on his non-stress test, but the doctors weren't worried. That morning, though, I was having regular contractions and they quickly decided to go ahead and take the baby. I also lost what seemed to me to be a HUGE amount of fluid, but my doctor said there was still plenty of fluid when they delivered, which was hard for me to believe. He also said he isn't sure whether I was truly in labor, but I was far enough along not to take any chances.
My baby boy Dexter weighed 5 lb 15 oz and was 18 1/2 inches long. He stayed in the regular nursery that morning, on oxygen for fluid in his lungs, which was due to the c-section and not to prematurity. Because of my prolonged rupture and some discharge in one eye, though, they decided to send him to the NICU for 3 days of antibiotics, just in case. Fortunately, he did not have an infection. He ended up in the NICU for 11 days because he wasn't eating enough and had to be tube fed for a few days.
Dexter is now 5 weeks old, home and thriving, gaining weight like a champ. We've even been able to transition to exclusive breastfeeding. My doctors (an ob and 2 perinatologists) believe that my PROM has something to do with IC/cerclage but they aren't exactly sure how this caused the rupture; each has a different theory. I will never know for sure, but I would like to have more children and being PAP will be very scary. However, I am so incredibly thankful to have the outcome that I did with this pregnancy and to have found this wonderful PROM resource, which I'm sure will help me tremendously in the future.