Common Causes For Birth Injuries

Common causes for birth injuries

The cup of joy that overflows in you on the birth of your newly born child vanishes immediately, when the child suffers from trauma or any birth injury. Despite the rich nourishment, best prenatal care offered to pregnant women in US, nearly 3 % newly born children have trauma or birth injuries. In fact significant birth injuries account for more than 2 % neonatal deaths.

During the process of delivery, when the newly born baby suffers a physical injury just because it is born, it is called birth trauma or birth injury.

Various causes may be attributed for the child’s birth trauma or birth injury and these causes may be largely classified into:

• Inherent or physical and other contributing factors from the mother of the child
• Human failure or external factors or causes contributed by the medical personnel

Inherent or physical factors:

• Oxygen deprivation:

During the birth process, when the umbilical cord of the child gets twisted over its neck and other parts of the body, the child gets suffocated and runs short of Oxygen. Virtually the child gets strangled in the birth process. In the result, the child’s brain may be damaged for want of Oxygen.As soon as the child is born medical treatment is provided to the child supplying necessary Oxygen.

• Baby born in a larger size:

Generally babies born in a larger size are susceptible to birth trauma or birth injuries. Babies weighing more than 4500 grams are said to be having birth trauma. In fact birth process is a combination of compressions, contractions, torques and traction. When the fetal size is abnormal and if the nervous system of the baby is immature, such factors may complicate the birth process causing tissue damage, edema, hemorrhage and fracture in the newly born baby.

• Pre-mature Babies:

Babies born before 37 weeks of pregnancy are premature babies. Such premature babies who are fragile in nature are prone to more birth injuries.

• Factors predisposing birth injury:

1. Prima gravida or a woman who is pregnant for the first time.

2. Cephalopelvic disproportion or the condition in which the baby’s head is too large to fit through the mother’s pelvis.

3. Small stature of the mother

4. Risk of carrying multiples

5.Risk of being an older mom

6. Maternal pelvic anomalies or the mother’s pelvis is too small or irregular making the delivery quite tough.

7. Prolonged or rapid labor in the delivery process.

8. The fetus has descended from the normal position

9. Deficiency of amniotic fluid making the normal delivery quite difficult.

10. Abnormal presentation (breech)

11 Use of mid cavity forceps or vacuum extractions

12 Abnormally slow growth and underweight of the fetus and extreme prematurity.

13. Fetal macrosomia or disproportionate growth and weight of the fetus.

14. Large fetal head

15. Fetal anomalies

16. Excessive weight gained by the mother during the pregnancy period.

17. Gestational diabetes.

18. Infection in the fetus.

19. Genetic Defects in the newly born child:

• Cystic Fibrosis
• Down Syndrome
• Sickle Cell anemia
• Mental Retardation
• Heart Defects
• Allergies
• Cleft lip
• Physical abnormalities

All these are predisposing factors that may cause birth trauma or birth injury.

• Alcohol consumed by child’s mother during the pregnancy period or when the child is unborn:-

When the child’s mother consumes alcohol during the pregnancy period, it may create Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effect in the child after its birth. The heavy drinking by the mother of the child during the early days of pregnancy, in which the baby’s facial features and brain are formed, may have its effect on the baby. Heavy drinking by the mother, may even affect the child’s brain. Similarly, use of drugs by the pregnant mother will affect the unborn child. Above all, having alcohol, may even become a hereditary factor affecting the child.

• Intake of harmful medicines like Depakote by the pregnant mother may cause birth injuries in a child.

Human Failure or External Factors that cause birth injuries:

Negligence or deficiency of service on the part of the medical personnel like doctors and nurses as against the pregnant women in the course of delivery or birth process is the major cause of many birth injuries as follows:

• Allowing a fetus in the birth canal without attending.
• Failure to diagnose properly and treat seizures after delivery.
• Failure to diagnose and treat Meconium Aspiration Syndrome before the birth of the baby that led to the choking of the child.
• Failure to monitor a baby, during the period of pregnancy or birthing process.
• Failure to monitor fetal development and recognise risks or complications.
• Failure to order proper tests associated with a known fetal condition.
• Failure to monitor for umblical cord complications.
• Using excessive or improper force in the delivery process of the baby.
• Excessive or improper use of forceps or vacuum for extraction.
• Failure to diagnose and correctly monitor the blood pressure of the pregnant mother during the birth process.
• Improper use of intubations for a new baby requiring oxygen.
• Medication Errors:

1.Pharmaceutical errors in filling the prescription

2.Prescribing wrong medication for the condition

3 Overdozing on medication

4 Giving a mother anothr person’s medication

5 Prescribing unsafe medication to a baby.

6.Combining medications causing harm to the baby.

Therefore, in order to avoid birth injuries, we need to concentrate on all the above mentioned factors.

Sources:

http://www.lawinfo.com

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/980112-overview

http://injury-law.freeadvice.com/injury-law/birth-injury.htm

http://www.birthinjury.org/

http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/au/

http://www.youclaim.co.uk/

http://www.chirowebs.com/

http://www.arbi.org/index.html/

http://guidewhois.com/

http://www.cerebral-palsy.injury.com/

http://www.depakotebirthinjury.com/

http://www.personalinjuryportal.com/

http://www.lpch.org/index.html/

http://www.birthinjuryinfo.com