Vaginal Birth = Increased Risk of Brain Hemmorhage in Newborns?

Filed in archive Diagnostics , Studies on January 31, 2007

Appearing in the February issue of Radiology is the study which found occurrence of a small amount of bleeding in and around the brains (brain hemmorhage) of newborns delivered vaginally.

The small bleeds in and around the brain called intracranial hemorrhages (ICH) are apparently common in newborns delivered vaginally.

According to John H. Gilmore, M.D., professor of psychiatry and Vice-Chair for Research and Scientific Affairs at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill:

"In our study, neither the size of the baby or the baby's head, the length of the labor, nor the use of vacuum or forceps to assist the delivery caused the bleeds. The bleeds are probably caused by pressure on the skull during delivery."

[In a newborn, the bones of the skull have not fused together, so the bones of the skull can shift and frequently overlap each other during vaginal delivery, to allow the baby's head to fit through the birth canal. This shifting can compress the brain or cause blood vessels to tear, which causes bleeding.]

Are we supposed to be worried? Is this another way to convince women to deliver by C-section?

As of this time, nobody knows of the long term effect. Most of such bleeds resolve over time without casing problems. But if those bleeds were larger, they may cause problem later in a child's life: seizures, subtle learning problems or problems with motor development.

Dr. Gilmore further stated:

"Obviously, the vast majority of us who were born vaginally and may have had these types of bleeds are doing just fine. Humans have been born vaginally for a very long time, and our brains probably evolved to handle vaginal birth without major difficulty."

Well I guess expectant mothers cannot yet rule out vaginal birth as a delivery option.

Read the full report.

Article abstract here.