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Preventable Birth Injuries and Defects

It crushes the expectant father’s heart and, most deeply, the mother’s loving heart when their newborn goes through birth injuries and defects. Some mothers would say it’s better for them to have the hurting experience than for their little baby to go through such issues after birth.

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Nevertheless, these painful experiences do happen. Some cases can’t be prevented, while other problems at birth could have been prevented during pregnancy, labor, and delivery.

Some Birth Afflictions That Can Be Avoided

Cerebral Palsy

The baby’s mobility, the tone of their muscles, and body coordination are all affected by this neurological condition. Some instances of cerebral palsy can be averted by assuring good obstetric care and monitoring during birth to prevent oxygen deprivation. Though it may not contain all cerebral palsy cases, it will prevent some from occurring.

Some cases of medical negligence leading to birth injuries happen when doctors fail to properly monitor and assess the baby’s tests that already showed signs of fetal distress. In most cases, fetal distress leads to hypoxia, a condition referring to a lack of oxygen in the brain. It’s one of the causes of cerebral palsy.

Spina Bifida

Spina bifida is a birth condition that affects newborns’ spinal cord and spinal column. It happens during the early stages of pregnancy or baby development in the womb. When the neural tube, which is the structure that eventually develops into the baby’s brain and spinal cord, fails to form correctly. 

It’s also one of the birth issues in babies, known as neural tube defect (NTD). This can lead to various newborn abnormalities in the spinal cord and nerves. It can cause problems with movement, sensation, and the ability to control one’s bladder and bowels.

Expectant mothers are advised to never miss their prenatal checkups. It’s one preventive measure whether you’re expecting a baby or gearing up to become a twin’s parent soon. Proper pregnancy monitoring is one of the many ways to prevent this defect in babies. 

Also, mothers taking folic acid while pregnant and getting the rubella vaccine will help avoid the development of Spina Bifida in babies.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

When a woman habitually consumes alcohol while pregnant, there’s a risk that her unborn child will develop various health issues, both physically and mentally. By abstaining from alcohol while pregnant, Mommies can eliminate the risk of their babies developing FAS.

FAS is a congenital disorder that impacts a baby’s development and growth. It often leads to anomalies or abnormalities in the baby’s physical, cognitive, and behavioral functioning. This disorder may persist throughout a child’s entire life.

It is recognized that alcohol can pass through the placenta and affect the fetus’s development. But the precise origin of FAS is not yet completely established. Soon-to-be mothers should avoid alcohol when pregnant to prevent their babies from getting FAS.

Brachial Plexus Injury

When the baby’s brachial plexus is damaged, it disrupts the communications that the nerves in that side of the body deliver to the shoulder, the arm, and the baby’s hand.

During birth, a condition known as shoulder dystocia can occur if one of the baby’s shoulders becomes lodged behind the mother’s pubic bone or at the sacrum. This bone sits at the rear of the pelvis, above the tailbone. Shoulder dystocia causes injury to the lump of nerves called the brachial plexus.

These are known birth injuries to the nerves controlling the arms and hands of infants. These nerves are responsible for sensations and movements in those areas. They’re more likely to happen when would-be moms have birthing difficulties. 

But brachial plexus injury from shoulder dystocia in newborns can be avoided with the right kind of prenatal care and precise medical attention during delivery.

To Conclude

Usually, it’s the Moms that get the blame whenever their babies are born with birth injuries, defects or abnormalities. While there may be seemingly unacceptable conditions at birth, the baby’s predicament may be beyond Mommy’s control. Most often, it’s the Moms who suffer the most.

Feeling and suffering with your baby is never an easy feat. You may scan the links and the points in this content so you’ll be able to prevent baby abnormalities at birth. 

Image Source: pixabay.com

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