> This was a heart warming story.
Indeed it is. However as often happens in media coverage some expressions tend toward misunderstanding. for example: >I wonder what makes them think that the baby > was "in a dry womb for 2 months" when at birth the hole in the membranes had > sealed and there was amniotic fluid there? sounds like media speak without an informed understanding. There needs to be a clearer understanding of these matters by people and I find it difficult to grasp that in the modern scientific age we live in with so much information available that such misunderstandings prevail. >I thought that the placenta went on > making amniotic fluid gradually all the time? yes it does To put it simply the cells of the amniotic membrane keep on making fluid in most cases. And the fetus swallows amniotic fluid and urine is excreted to be come part of the amniotic fluid. Try Stables Dorothy. 1999, Physiology in child bearing with anatomy Related Biosciences, London: Bailliere Tindall (page 143 Chapter 12) Although Stables states "the exact source of amniotic fluid is not yet known" the amniotic membrane (which is part of the placenta but not THE placenta) seems to play a part. The chorion and the amnion part of the membrane have cells which are involved in the transfer of the fluid across the cell membrane. it seems prolactin and other hormones may play a part in the regulation of the volume of amniotic fluid produced. "Water and solutes can be transferred across the amnion and chorion by hydraulic, osmotic and electochemical forces" "amniotic fluid is in a constant state of circulation and renewal." It is not uncommon for women whose membranes have ruptured very early to go on producing amniotic fluid for many more weeks or for the break to seal and the baby gets to be born and a more viable age. Ruth ------------------------------------- Ruth Cantrill Griffith University NATHAN QLD 4111 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
