![]() Some post-dates pregnancies (when they are more than 40 weeks pregnant) may also have meconium-stained amniotic fluid without fetal distress. The stained amniotic fluid is recognized by medical staff as a possible sign of fetal distress. Meconium is normally retained in the infant's bowel until after birth, but sometimes it is expelled into the amniotic fluid prior to birth or during labor and delivery. It should be completely passed by the end of the first few days after birth, with the stools progressing toward yellow (digested milk).Ĭlinical significance Meconium in amniotic fluid When diluted in amniotic fluid, it may appear in various shades of green, brown, or yellow. Meconium, unlike later feces, is viscous and sticky like tar – its color usually being a very dark olive green and it is almost odorless. Unlike later feces, meconium is composed of materials ingested during the time the infant spends in the uterus: intestinal epithelial cells, lanugo, mucus, amniotic fluid, bile, and water. Meconium is the earliest stool of a mammalian infant resulting from defecation.
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