Complications for the child

Complications for the child occur mainly during the birth process. Causes may be the size, position or posture of the child or the mother’s contractions and physique. An important complication of these causes is the cessation of labour, where the birth does not progress any further despite good contractions ().

In the case of a birth arrest in the opening phase (no further opening of the cervix for more than two hours), a caesarean section is performed in most cases. In the case of a birth arrest in the expulsion phase (no birth progress for more than about one hour), either a Caesarean section is performed or the birth is terminated with the help of a suction cup or forceps delivery. and complications and risks of a Caesarean section In addition to the pelvic end position (see below), the so-called positional anomalies of the child include the transverse or oblique position, when the child lies transverse or oblique in relation to the birth canal.

Postural anomalies describe, among other things, the forehead or facial position when the child’s head is hyperextended backwards. In most cases, a caesarean section is then performed. Problems during birth can also occur if the baby’s head does not rotate properly into the mother’s pelvis.

If the head does not adjust properly despite various aids, the birth must be terminated by external intervention (suction cup, forceps or caesarean section). A so-called shoulder dystocia occurs in 0.5 to 1 percent of all births and describes the condition when the child’s head is already born but due to a missing rotation of the child the shoulders still hang in the mother’s pelvis so that the rest of the body cannot be born.The risk of shoulder dystocia is increased in large children (over 4000 g) and is an emergency for both mother and child. A disruption of the contractions means stress for mother and child and can cause, among other things, an oxygen deficiency in the baby, a delay in the birth process or a cessation of labour.

The contractions can be either too weak or too strong: Too little contractions describe weak contractions, short contractions or too long pauses between individual contractions. Too violent contractions describe too strong or too frequent contractions up to a so-called storm of contractions. In addition, stress for the child during birth can lead to the premature loss of the so-called child’s speech (meconium).

The meconium is the first stool of the newborn child, which is normally released within the first 48 hours after birth. Due to birth complications such as a lack of oxygen in the baby, the meconium can already be deposited in the amniotic fluid during the birth process. This poses an acute threat to the child, as the amniotic fluid containing meconium can be inhaled and can lead to lung damage (meconium aspiration syndrome).

A disproportion between the child’s head and the mother’s pelvis (shape and/or size do not match), a pelvis that is too narrow or a pelvic floor that is too tight can also cause complications during birth and, among other things, lead to a cessation of birth. Other complications for the child under birth are problems with the umbilical cord. These can be, for example, umbilical cord loops and umbilical cord nodes – an acute emergency is the prolapse of the umbilical cord (see below).