Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd is India’s leading emergency medical services provider company. Over the past 16 years, it has been its aim to reduce the number of fatalities caused by any chronic disease by providing timely emergency medical help to people within the golden hour in India.
They also have the experience of serving over a million pregnant women in India in a critical situation to ensure safe institutional deliveries.
Ziqitza Healthcare also provides assistance through services like medical helpline and ambulance services to patients/ callers in case of a medical emergency from anywhere, at any time, for immediate assistance.
Over the years, it has been noted that one of the key reasons for the usage of ambulances has been for pregnant women.
Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd believes it is crucial that during pregnancy, various precautions need to be taken to ensure the safety of the unborn child and the mother.
‘Beautiful, delicate time’
“Pregnancy is a beautiful, but delicate time in a woman’s life. There are a multitude of changes being carried out in the woman’s body, affecting hormone levels and basic body functions. One of the side-effects of pregnancy is the weakening of the immune system in the body, which makes the expecting mothers and their unborn children susceptible to a host of illnesses,” says Dr Santosh Datar from Ziqitza Healthcare.
Based on research papers Dr Datar remarks that one of the issues pregnant women are prone to during this season are viral infections.
While they may not affect the body greatly otherwise, pregnancy may make them severe and affect the mother and her unborn child to a large extent.
They can lead to miscarriage, preterm labour, or even birth defects in the foetus. It is extremely important to identify these infections early, and begin treatment to minimise risks to both mother and child.
Some of these infections are:
Yeast Infections
This type of fungal infection is fairly common in women of all ages. Studies have shown that it affects three out of four women at least once in their life and around 45 per cent of women experience it twice. It causes intense irritation, discharge and itchiness of the vagina and vulva. The infection is easily treatable with medication, but can become complicated when pregnant, as it can be passed on to the baby during delivery. Its treatment includes antifungal creams or vaginal suppository, but oral antifungal drugs are not recommended, as they have been linked to causing miscarriages.
Bacterial vaginosis
Dr Datar from Ziqitza remarks that the vagina contains two kinds of bacteria — lactobacilli and anaerobes. There usually exists a careful balance between the two, but an imbalance can lead to an infection known as Bacterial Vaginosis, which is one of the most common infections in pregnant women. This is usually a mild infection and is easily treatable with medicine, but if left untreated, can cause complications in pregnancy like early delivery, low birth weight of the baby, and increased chances of contracting other infections. It can be treated with antibiotics, and usually clears up within two or three days.
Asymptomatic Bacteria
Also known as a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), it is caused when bacteria is present in a voided urine sample. This infection does not cause any noticeable symptoms, and only refers to the detection of a high level of bacteria in the urine sample. According to medical experts, this infection affects 1.9 to 9.5 per cent of pregnant women. Dr Datar emphasises that early detection and treatment is important, as the infection can lead to a number of serious issues like acute urethritis, acute cystitis, acute pyelonephritis, low birth weight in the baby, and preterm labour.
Cytomegalovirus Infection (CMV)
Cytomegalovirus infection (CMV) is a fairly common infection that can be contracted by anyone at any time. Once contracted, the virus remains in the host body throughout, and rarely causes any problems in those who are healthy. However, for pregnant women with a weak immune system, CMV is a major cause of concern as it gets passed on to the unborn baby, and can result in hearing loss, vision problems and developmental delays.
Taking small, everyday precautions are the best way to prevent these viral infections.
These include:
Maintaining general hygiene and regularly washing hands with soap.
Being wary of meats — cooking them thoroughly and avoiding undercooked meats like deli meat.
Avoiding unpasteurised or raw dairy products — soft cheeses like Brie, Camembert and blue cheese.
Staying away from cat litter boxes — a hotbed of diseases, along with rodents and other wild animals.
Getting regular check-ups done and being up-to-date with all vaccinations.
About Ziqitza HealthCare Limited
Ziqitza HealthCare Limited (ZHL) is the leading provider of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in India since 2005. Our clients include hospitals, the Government and corporate clients in India & the Gulf for varied EMS requirements like ambulances, medical mobile units, telemedicine, and helplines.
Ziqitza Rajasthan has organised various health awareness camps for pregnant women in the past.
ZHL Rajasthan & Ziqitza Limited Rajasthan have appreciated Dr Datar & his team at Ziqitza Healthcare ltd for their observations on the precautions to be taken during pregnancy.
We are committed to saving lives. We do this by understanding our customers’ needs and by providing the best possible solutions irrespective of their location or income. The company engages over 39,000 ambulances in its network in India with services available in over 750 cities.
For further information please contact: visakh.dayanandan@zhl.in.
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