Common Types and Causes of Birth Injury

Common Types and Causes of Birth Injury
Common Types and Causes of Birth Injury
February 4th, 2021

During or around the birth of a child, any injury that leads to the baby being harmed can be classified as a birth injury. This could be anything, from birth asphyxia to birth trauma or infection. The injuries incurred may heal over a period of days or leave lasting permanent disability depending on the nature and severity of the trauma.

Common Birth Injuries

Birth injuries are more common than we realize. Some of these include:

  • Brachial Plexus Injury
  • Caput Succedaneum
  • Head trauma from forceps
  • Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy
  • Cerebral Palsy
  • Meconium aspiration
  • Cephalohematoma
  • Fractures
  • Facial Paralysis
  • Subconjunctival Hemorrhage
  • Periventricular Leukomalacia
  • Seizure Disorder
  • Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
  • Other types of Brain Damage

The cause of birth injury may differ, and medical practitioners are often to blame. Proving a case of negligence or medical malpractice against your practitioner requires adequate knowledge that your birth injury lawyer can help you with.

Causes of Birth Injuries

Birth injuries may be sustained due to several causes beginning from the prenatal period to the actual birthing process. Here is a list of such causes:

Birth Injury Due to Deprivation of Oxygen

Deprivation of oxygen during birth or birth asphyxia causes damage to the brain’s tissues causing hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy due to lack of oxygen and blood supply. The damage may extend beyond the brain tissues to other organs, causing cell death, and requires urgent medical care to prevent further spread and minimizing the damage with appropriate and timely medical intervention. Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy can be prevented by ensuring correct medical management.

Traumatic birth injury

Trauma during birth occurs due to excessive forces like pressure or torsion on the infant. Trauma during birth is preventable by adhering to optimal medical care standards and correctly monitoring both mother and child for signs and symptoms that may lead to any unusual (other than non-eventful vaginal birth) events that may cause trauma. Some of these events are:

Premature birth: Infants born before 37 weeks are more susceptible to injuries during the birthing process.

High birth weight: Large infants with higher than average birth weight can cause the birth process to get complicated.

Disproportionate cephalo-pelvis: The size of the baby’s head and the size of the mother’s pelvis are not proportionately sized to allow a normal vaginal delivery and can cause a difficult birth.

Prolonged Labor: Delay or arrest in labor can cause many severe complications during birth.

Abnormal Presentation at birth: Abnormal or breech presentation during birth can cause complications during birth.

Dystocia: Difficult childbirth can be a causative agent for birth trauma.

Incorrect use of forceps or vacuum instruments: Incorrect use of forceps or vacuum extractors can lead to head trauma by lacerations and cuts or visible markings on the head and face.

Birth Injury Caused by Obstetric and Labor Complications

Incorrect obstetric maneuvers and inadequate care during labor can lead to birth injuries. Here are the conditions that lead to obstetric and labor emergencies:

Injuries resulting from Obstetric Complications: Injuries sustained during obstetric interventions can be prevented when the medical staff is trained to handle obstetric emergencies and give appropriate and timely treatment. The following are some conditions that may be a cause of an obstetric emergency:

  • Fetal distress
  • Uterine rupture
  • Umbilical cord prolapse
  • Placenta previa
  • Placental abruption
  • Neonatal resuscitation

Injuries resulting from labor complications: Birth injuries can occur when medical personnel fails to administer the required care during labor. Some such medical emergencies are preventable if the right intervention is administered on time. Here are a few of them:

  • Delay in delivery
  • Incorrectly administered anesthesia
  • Incorrect administration of labor-inducing medication
  • Inadequate fetal care

Birth Injury from Inadequate Prenatal Care

Prenatal care consists of regular physical check-ups with a gynecologist, timely ultrasounds to check for the fetus’s development and check for developmental anomalies. Regular blood tests check for markers of many lifestyle diseases and systemic illnesses that can prevent many complications during pregnancy if detected early. In addition, the medical personnel needs to detect potential risks that may lead to birth injuries during the prenatal period effectively.

Prenatal Care

Birth Injury from Inadequate NICU Care

Infants or neonates must be kept in the neonatal intensive care unit or NICU to prevent and treat medical conditions occurring at birth. However, if NICU care given to the infant proves inadequate, it can cause further damage. Neonates require regular feeding and warmth to combat the low blood sugar levels. Some infants also suffer from jaundice and may require phototherapy lights to prevent Kernicterus, a condition caused when bilirubin in a jaundiced neonate crosses the blood-brain barrier, damaging the brain tissues. This can be prevented by adequate NICU care.

Birth Injury from Infection

Infants are susceptible to infections that the mother may be exposed to. Prenatal care requires testing several infections that can infect the brain, the meninges, and the fetus’s lungs. During the labor and delivery, the medical personnel must ensure a sterile environment free from exposure to toxins and infectious agents for the infant. Medical practitioners may also be required to take extra measures if the mother has a pre-existing infection communicable at birth, e.g., HIV.

Birth Injury from Inadequate Maternal Medical Care

  • Obesity
  • VBAC
  • Gestational diabetes
  • Pre-eclampsia and hypertension
  • PCOS
  • Thyroid imbalance
  • Premature rupture of membranes
  • Higher maternal age
  • Oligohydramnios
  • HIV
  • Autoimmune disorders
  • Other systemic conditions

Has your child suffered a birth injury? Understanding the cause of the injury can help you find out if it was preventable with proper care. In such a case, a birth injury attorney can help you connect with the best medical consultants to identify all the aspects of your case, take you through the process of initiating a medical malpractice claim, and help you take the right course of action. You can fill in the form provided here to get in touch with experienced lawyers who can consult you and help you through a lawsuit.

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