Question

PSI 17 Birth Trauma Rate – Injury to Neonate why this patient safety indicator require more attention? What are ways of prevention?  

Answer 1

.Birthinjuries is an impairment of the infants body function or structure due to adverse influence that occured at birth.Injury commonly occurs during labour and delivery.Birth injuries may be severe enough to cause neonatal deaths, still births and number of morbidities.

high risk factors are;

• Prolonged or obstructed labour
• fetal macrosomia
• cephalo pelvic disproportion
• abnormal presentation
• instrumental delivery(forceps or ventous)
• Difficult labour
• shoulder distocia
• in adequate maternal pelvis
• oligohydromnios
• fetal anomalies
• precipitate labour
• manipulative delivery

types of injury includes:

• soft tissue
• muscle
• nerve
• eye
• viscera
• scalp
• dislocation
• skull
• intracranial
• bones

Birth traumas are avoidable when appropriate care is avoidable and others are the part of a delivery process that can occur even when clinicians practice extreme cautiously. amniocentesis and intrauterine transfusions can cause injuries before birth, and these and any injuries that happening during neonatal resuscitation procedures are not considered as birth injuries. while injuries during fetal scalp electrodes and intrapartum heart rate monitoring are considered birth injuries.

prevention of birth injuries :

• recognize fetal distress
• a timely cessarean section
• properly resucsitate a depressed baby
• appropriate use of oxytocin/misoprostol
• appropriate use of vaccum /forceps
• effective management of shoulder dystocia