Restoration of the mucous uterus, that is, the endometrium, requires several weeks after childbirth. All this period in the parturient woman from the genital tract there are secretions. Every woman needs to know what kind of discharge is, what they should be and how long the discharge goes after giving birth.
In medicine, discharge from the genital tract of the woman in childbirth is called lochia. Over time, they are becoming less, as there is a gradual healing of the wound surface of the mucosa formed at the time of separation of the placenta.
Lochias are a mixture consisting of dying epithelium, mucus from the cervical canal, cells and blood plasma. Over time, the color of the discharge changes, which is due to changes in their composition. Normally, the character of Lochi corresponds to certain days after childbirth. Being in the first days in the maternity hospital (5 days after natural delivery and 7-8 days after cesarean section), the woman and her discharge are under the control of specialists. However, after being discharged home, newly mum should watch for themselves the nature and quantity of lochi that can tell a lot about the processes taking place in the woman's womb. In case of abnormalities should consult a specialist.
So, the allocation can be conditionally divided into those that take place even in the hospital, and those that the woman watches at home.
Maternity hospital
During the first two hours after delivery, the woman in labor should be in the maternity ward where labor took place. It can be in the box or in the corridor on a gurney. In this early postpartum period, it is important to be supervised by the medical staff. Immediately after the release of the baby, the discharge should normally be bloody, abundant (0.5% of the total body weight), but not more than 400 ml.
The danger is bleeding, which can occur in the next 2 hours. It occurs because of tissue ruptures in the birth canal, if they are not sutured or poorly sewn. After delivery, the doctor should carefully examine the cervix and vagina. If the place of rupture is not sewn up to the end, there is a hematoma and blood accumulates in the tissues of the vagina or perineum. In this case, the woman feels the bursting in the perineum. The doctor should open the hematoma and re-suture the rupture under general anesthesia.
If 2 hours in the maternity ward were without excesses, the woman was transferred to the ward of the postpartum department, where she would spend the next 5-7 days. Allocations of the first 2-3 days should be bloody, sufficiently abundant (for the first three days about 300 ml) and completely fill the gasket or diaper for 1-2 hours. They can appear even after the palpation of the abdomen by a doctor. In this case, the lochia have the appearance of clots, have a pungent odor, are similar to menstrual discharge. Gradually, the number of lochies is reduced. They become dark red with a brownish tinge. At movement of allocation can amplify.
Bleeding, which may appear in the first days (sometimes even weeks) after childbirth, arises from the delay of parts of the placenta. This means that it was not determined in time (in the first 2 hours). Sometimes bleeding is associated with disorders in the blood coagulation system (0.2-0.3% of cases).
At home
In an ideal situation, the lochia come out within 6-8 weeks. This time is enough to restore the uterus after birth. The total volume of excretions in this period should be 500-1500 ml. The first week after childbirth is accompanied by excreta, similar to the usual monthly, but more abundant and with clots. The quantity of lochies decreases every day. Gradually they become yellowish white, which is caused by mucus and may contain a little blood. Approximately to the 4th week the nature of the secretions "smearing", meager. By 6-8 weeks they become the same as they were before pregnancy.
If a woman is breastfeeding, the allocation stops earlier, because the process of recovery of the uterus is faster. Some time in the abdomen, cramping pains may be felt during feeding, but they must pass for several days.
If the birth was accompanied by a caesarean section, recovery is much slower: because of the surgical suture, the uterus is reduced worse.