Amniotic fluid is one of the most important components of your body that helps support your nine month long pregnancy. Amniotic fluid is the fluid filled sac that surrounds your growing baby and performs many important functions. It helps to keep your baby from getting traumatized by any kind of shock as it acts like a soft cushion on all sides. It ensures that the umbilical cord does not get compressed thus reducing the flow of oxygen to the baby, amniotic fluid also helps to maintain a moderate temperature in the womb, it keeps the baby from contracting any kind of infection and it also give your growing baby space to move around so that his muscles and bones get enough of place to develop wholly. During the second trimester when you baby has learnt how to swallow, it will be swallowing this amniotic fluid as well. This swallowed fluid is then passed out through the digestive system of the baby. This in turn helps to maintain the optimum level of amniotic fluid in the sac, the swallowing helps your baby to practice breathing and this cycle of swallowing and excreting the amniotic fluid ensures that the supply of amniotic fluid around the baby is constantly fresh.

If you are undergoing a normal pregnancy, your quantity of amniotic fluid keeps increasing till the third trimester. From the third trimester till the time of your delivery, the amniotic fluid level begins to drop. The case where excess of amniotic fluid might accumulate in your uterus is rare. When your abdomen begins to grow really quick, the doctor usually does notice the excess of amniotic fluid in your stomach and measures are taken to help normalize that level. Swelling of your feet, shortness of breath, increase in your back pain and unusually increased discomfort of the abdominal area are other signs of you suffering from an excess of amniotic fluid. There is no definite known cause as to why excessive amniotic fluid can begin to accumulate but some of the assumed causes are maternal diabetes, carrying multiple children in the womb at a single time, fetal abnormalities and fetal anemia.

If you are diagnosed with excessive amniotic fluid in your sac, your doctor will ask you to go through a high resolution ultrasound to check for signs that you might be suffering from an excess accumulation of amniotic fluid and you might also be asked to go through an amniocentesis to check if there are any genetic defects. If the doctor fears that you have chances of suffering from excess of amniotic fluid, you might be asked to go in for regular check ups where you will be thoroughly monitored and constantly checked via these tests. In cases of as excess of amniotic fluid, you are usually asked to undergo a cesarean section delivery as that ensures neither any placental abruption will take place, nor will there be any prolapse of the umbilical cord.

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