I am 32 weeks pregnant with my 2nd baby. My (type1) diabetes control this time around is not as good as with my first baby(Mark!). My latest A1C, about 5 weeks ago, was 6.0, but it may have gone up some since then. At my appointment last week, at 31 weeks, I was told that I have Polyhydramnios (high amniotic fluid) with an AFI of 27.
I saw a few discussions on here about high AFIs, but I thought there would have been more info being it's common with diabetics. I also have been googling it but the info out there is pretty vague.
I am hoping to hear from others that had/have high AFIs during your pregnancy. In particular, I was wondering -
- What were your AFI levels and during what week of pregnany? (what was your max/when?) - Did your AFI increase or decrease during your last trimester? Could you associate it directly to your diabetes control (A1c)? (I didn't think that my 6.0 was THAT bad to cause this!) - Did your doctor check for any of the other possible causes of high AFI (like baby inability to swallow because of an intestinal tract blockage or neurological abnormalities)(did they do an amnio, or did they just assume it was because of your diabetes?) - Did you deliver early because of this, or have any complications? (most people say don't worry about this, but the info looks pretty scary, and my doctors says I better get my diabetes under better control!)!)
I don’t remember my exact levels but i do remember them being normal but had to do NSTs twice a week due to pre-e. My son was born at 34 weeks due to pre-e but i had steroid shots for his lungs. My a1c was 7.0 my entire pregnancy and my baby boy is a happy, healthy 12 month old.
I had high AFI levels. I don't remember how high, but never high enough that my OB wanted to do anything about it. I'm actually pretty sure of what caused it: Water retention in general. It started happening around the time that I started swelling up like a balloon! My A1c was about as good as you could get, bouncing between 5.2 and 5.4, and there was no increase as the fluid increased.
We never did anything about it, like inducing early, but my labor started with my water breaking. It happened when I was all propped up on the couch to try and elevate my feet, and shifted positions just kind of popped! I suspect it happened because of the extra pressure of all the fluid, but that's really just a guess.
I had no problems with my first pregnancy but this time around, at 33 weeks, I was told I have high amniotic fluid. I wasn't told the exact number and the doctor doesn't seem *that* concerned actually but it has me slightly worried. So I would also like more information on this and would like to hear about others experiences concerning this. Also at 33 weeks I was going through early labor symptoms. Lots of contractions and it seemed my water may have been leaking. I was given a shot of morphine and told pretty much to be on bed rest. I'm 36 weeks now and the contractions seemed to have calmed down. I'm wondering if the baby is still going to be coming a little early..
I had high AFI's during my 3rd trimester. (it first became apparent during the 27th week..measuring 25) Ranged from 25-29 throughout, with the peak at 33 weeks and then coming down to 27. My a1c also went up during the last trimester but it didn't seem to affect the AFI levels that much. My perinatologist offered to do an amniocentesis but that wasn't something I felt the risk was worth taking. (as the AFI levels were relatively steady) I also have a genetic condition that can affect the AFI levels & can be passed down,but the costs associated with the amnio/testing weren't covered by insurance,and it wasn't something that they could definetly say either way what my high AFI's were caused by so I didn't go that route.(I know for sure the AFI levels were D-related now..as they throughly checked the baby at birth,and he did not have that genetic condition and is healthy)Hindsight is 20/20..you do the best you can do. I went into labor (water burst)at 38.5 weeks, it did not complicate the actual labor process, although I had alot of false contractions in the weeks prior). Who can say whether it speeded things up in that regard,my opinion is that it did(in my case). It didn't cause any serious complications though.
I had high AF, but I don't remember the number. It started at 31 weeks. My level stayed constant, and the OB didn't do anything about it--she said the only thing she would normally do would be NSTs twice a week, and I was about to start those anyway. I would have started them at 32 weeks, but she just had me start a week early.
My A1c was fairly constant throughout pregnancy (high 5s-low 6s), so I didn't see any direct correlation there. Then again, the A1c that would have most reflected the 3rd trimester would have been postpartum, and I didn't have one drawn again for several months.
I had a c-section scheduled (baby was LGA) but went into labor at 37.5 weeks. Early, but technically full term. My daughter was in the NICU for a couple of days for hypoglycemia and brief respiratory difficulties, and to rule out meconium aspiration syndrome. She was released after that and has been perfectly fine ever since (now almost 11 months old).
I was one of the people who posted awhile back about polyhydramnios, because I was in the same boat as you--concerned, but not finding a whole lot of good info. What my OB told me was that she wasn't too worried as long as the level stayed constant. And remember that measuring the AFI is not an exact science, so don't worry if it fluctuates a little bit.
It's been a while, but thank you all for your replies. My AFI since writing this has gone down to 14 and now at 38.5 weeks is back up to 25. Both times that it has been high (now and when i originally wrote my question) I was also sick (cold/cough!). My A1C has also gone down to 5.7 so I guess I'll never know if the high AFI was/is due to the diabetes or just due to my colds or what. But, the doctor now doesn't seem very concerned now, I guess being I'm so close to my due date. Thank you all again for your replies.
Your AFI will change throughout each day. I had similar response to the condition as another poster who said their OB just started their NSTs a week earlier than planned. The highest I've seen my AFI so far is 27. It's been consistently between 17 and 27 for the past six weeks.
I'm also finding that this pregnancy has been more challenging in controlling glucose levels compared to my last pregnancy. I'm injecting so much insulin even though I don't eat often or much. It's like injecting water.
My daughter was born last year at 38w due to Pre E (I actually had somewhat LOW AFI with her and my A1c was 5.8) My Endo said that every subsequent pregnancy produces stronger and stronger insulin resistance hormones from the placenta. Basically, the trouble that I'm having is expected.
I'm currently almost 35w pregnant. My docs don't think I'm going to "make it" to my scheduled repeat section because they think my water is going to break early because it's so stinking heavy. I've gained a total of 7 lbs this pregnancy, my baby is measuring almost 5 lbs, and I've got an excess of amniotic fluid- you can imagine how big my belly is in comparison to the rest of my body. haha. It's almost comical.
Good luck to you. A friend of mine's water broke at just 37w, possibly due to high AFI. She went into labor and delivered a very healthy and happy baby girl.
