Pregnancy: How Technology Has Improved It
Significant innovative technologies are repurposing and enhancing every field of medicine, including obstetrics and gynecology, and improving women’s health care during pregnancy. Technological advancements in today’s developing world have contributed to improved maternal and child healthcare through medical interventions, like newly developed immunizations and prenatal care.
Pregnancy is undoubtedly an exciting experience, especially for new parents and a problematic one, given the constant monitoring and health concerns. With the emergence of new technologies and telemedicine and other fields, pregnant women can now adapt to more options to solve their problems. The advanced pregnancy technologies will keep the expecting moms’ minds at ease and avoid pregnancy-related complications. The following are some technological innovations that have enabled easy monitoring of pregnancy and improved the lives of pregnant women.
1) New Technologies in Vitro Fertilization (IVF)
IVF is a type of assisted reproductive technology. An egg is taken from a woman’s ovary and inseminated with sperm. Advances in IVF have helped couples struggling with fertility conceive, thus increasing pregnancy rates around the world. Advancements in egg freezing technology have enabled many couples to have multiple children due to one IVF cycle. Freezing the eggs has also empowered thousands of women to have children when the time is right, not when the biological clock says it. Even if some women can’t produce their own eggs, they can still rely on donor eggs and be able to experience pregnancy.
In recent times, couples have been exploring gender swaying options. IVF experts use the Preimplantation genetic diagnosis or PGD testing method to increase the probability of a sway boy or a girl. It also reduces the risk of passing certain genetic diseases on to the baby. There are increased chances of ending up with the preferred gender. However, it’s not a hundred percent fail-safe method. However, this method could be expensive and invasive, so it’s better to discuss all possible options with one’s doctor first.
2) Wireless Wellness Solutions
Technology has optimized women to become active participants in the wellness experience while reducing the associated costs and waiting time. They may now utilize wireless technology and home monitoring devices. For example, scales and blood pressure cuffs, are linked to their cellphones and feed data straight to a knowledge-based tracking system. Then the system collects all the entered information in one place, and the midwife team can access this information to evaluate the data. Issues such as weight gain or high blood pressure can be identified earlier by the health team, and prompt medical treatment can start. Telehealth facilitates doctors to identify patient trends, improve quality of care, reduce cost and enhance the patient experience.
3) Mobile Healthcare Application Tools
Digital health tools and smartphone applications enable expectant mothers to send their real-time vitals data to doctors from their homes without visiting hospitals or clinics. Pregnant women can register online with their doctors and enter information to monitor their progress and observe any complications. Mobile health applications include software for fitness, weight, nutrition, and medication use to monitor pregnancy.
The mobile health plan sends vaccination or inspection reminders, provides remote consultation, facilitates access to health clinics, improves contact with local health workers, and tracks prenatal and postnatal vitals. Expectant mothers can access the portable ultrasound technology from their smartphone devices to monitor their babies’ movements and heartbeat rates.
4) Medical Education and Performance
The latest generation of medical students and residents can enhance their medical knowledge through simulation, interactive workshops, and group activities. Video capture systems can get used in surgical training of obstetrics and gynecology students to improve their skill sets. These simulations can compensate for the lack of training in this field. A contraception simulation developed for obstetrics and gynecology residents in Catholic hospitals included installing IUDs leading to a significant increase in their knowledge. There are alternate types of technologies that can provide the same level of training in countries that do not offer video-capture systems or simulation programs. The use of computer games is a feasible education option, especially for interpreting electronic fetal monitoring.
The use of mobile apps is as common among gynecologists as it is among pregnant women. They see the applications as a clinical tool to improve productivity. New technological methods have also led to improvement in surgical procedures. Minimally invasive options such as robotic surgery will soon become the new standard for managing endometrial cancer and other diseases. Robotic surgery has potential ergonomic advantages, such as less blood loss, fewer complications, and faster patient recovery.
5) Artificial Intelligence -Advancing women’s healthcare
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the future of healthcare, with many interesting prospects in the gynecology field. Through pattern recognition, AI enables pregnant women and their physicians to make informed decisions about drug choices during pregnancy. Electronic medical records are one of the most important artificial intelligence applications. The data fed into the system generates alerts and identifies which expectant mothers might be susceptible to preterm birth. This reasoning depends on personal risk factors and the relationship between certain test results and patterns recognized by the system.
Apart from monitoring women’s health during pregnancy, these AI applications also help improve the universal facilitation of health services in countries. An AI algorithm can substitute for expensive equipment needed to run traditional tests like Pap smears and HPV tests. The computerized digital image analysis of the cervix can provide advanced cervical cancer screening in under-developed countries where the lack of preventive screenings can result in 80% of deaths from cervical cancer.
Conclusion
The advancements in technology have been shown to have a significant impact on women’s health. Telemedicine and mobile technology can encourage fewer in-person visits for healthy pregnant women, thus enhancing healthcare availability. Video-assisted technology and simulations can facilitate new trainees to develop skills in rare diseases and pregnancy health situations. Advances in IVF technology have increased the number of pregnancies and made it more affordable for infertile couples worldwide. Improvements in surgical procedures have made surgeries more time-saving and minimally invasive. Doctors and healthcare givers are thus making more use of digital tools to improve the patient experience for expecting mothers. Through pregnant applications, doctors may obtain more real-time data on their patients’ health, identify potential health issues, and treat them as soon as feasible.
