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Complications during childbirth can put maternal or fetal health at risk. Pre-existing conditions like previous cesarean, serious illness of the mother, and multiple births can increase risks. Delivery complications like breech presentation, blocked head, and shoulder dystocia can also occur. Surgery may be required if labor does not progress or if there is a risk to the baby’s oxygen supply. Infection remains a risk in some parts of the world.
Although many women have safe and uncomplicated labor experiences, giving birth to healthy babies, there are complications at birth, which put maternal or fetal health at risk. It makes sense to understand what could potentially go wrong since pregnancy is not without its risks. There are several ways to classify complications of childbirth, and one method is to discuss complications that occur as a result of a condition before labor and those that develop during labor. There are many complications and the examples below are only part of them.
Birth complications that exist before labor can increase the risks of labor. One of them is a previous cesarean. Some women have had a C-section and want to give birth vaginally next time, which is called vaginal birth after C-section (VBAC). When this is attempted, it may or may not work, and some women who seek a VBAC end up requiring surgical delivery. To reduce possible birth complications that occur during a VBAC, doctors and patients often decide ahead of time when to have surgery if labor isn’t progressing at a regular pace.
Another pre-existing condition that could severely complicate labor is serious illness of the mother. Illnesses such as preeclampsia or gestational diabetes could pose a real risk to mother and child. Sometimes vaginal delivery is not attempted when these conditions are present because the risk is too high. Likewise, severe traumatic injuries to a mother can cause premature birth or require a cesarean section.
Multiple births are, by nature, complicated. They can go perfectly or pose a risk. Some women deliver twins vaginally, but higher order multiples may need additional support and are often born prematurely.
Delivery complications can develop during labor or be obviously present just a week or two before labor begins. A common one is the way the child presents. Normally, babies are born head first, but some might be breech with the feet or rear pointing toward the birth canal. This is challenging because the baby’s body can be delivered quite easily, but the head can get stuck, as it is larger. Breech presentation may require an attempt to turn the baby, which can be difficult and painful, or determine whether a C-section is more appropriate.
Even in the appropriate position, the head can become blocked, especially if it is very large, and require the use of forceps or suction. A very large head may require a caesarean section. You may also experience birth complications such as shoulder dystocia, where one shoulder cannot pass after the head. Manipulating the fetal arm to allow passage can cause shoulder damage.
Sometimes labor does not progress, requiring surgery, or birth complications such as precipitous labor, with labor going too fast, may occur. Prolapse or early delivery of the umbilical cord creates an exceptional risk for the baby cutting off the oxygen supply and there is a greater risk if the cord is wrapped around the baby’s neck, and in some parts of the world infection remains a great risk after labor, mainly to poor hygiene.
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