What is the reasons for a baby to born with having hypoxia which affect his brain?
Apr 23, 2013
The blood and nutrients reach the baby through the umbilical cord.
Intrauterine hypoxia may be due to problems in the umbilical cord such as cord prolapse (when the cord exits before the baby during delivery) /occlusion (this is when the cord gets trapped between the baby and the birth canal, causing blockage of blood supply to the baby), placental infarction (death of placental tissue because not enough blood reaches it) and maternal smoking. Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), when the baby is born small, may cause or be the result of hypoxia. Birth asphyxia may result due to prolonged labor (more than 18 hours), breech delivery in full-term infants (baby's feet come out before the head); placental abruption (the placenta separates from the uterus) , and maternal sedation in premature infants.
Oxygen deprivation is the most common cause of perinatal brain injury.
Intrauterine hypoxia and birth asphyxia can cause hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy where the brain and spinal cord are injured from inadequate oxygen, leading to an increased mortality rate, including an increased risk of Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Oxygen deprivation in the fetus and neonate have been pointed out to be as either the leading cause or as contributing risk factors in many neurological disorders such as epilepsy, ADHD (attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder), and cerebral palsy.
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Hypoxia at birth could be due to several causes. It is mostly due to an accident that occured prenatally (before the baby was born), perinatally (around the delivery period) or postnatally (after birth). Prenatally and perinatally, the brain could be injured due to infection that the mom had during pregnancy, vascular problem that the baby has inherited or a problem in the placenta (which provides the nutrients and oxygenation to the baby), decreased perfusion and blood flow to the baby if the mom is a smoker (because it affects the intrauterine vessels) or as a side effect that the mom has taken during pregnancy. Also some congenital diseases (disease present since birth)and inherited ones (genetically transmitted) will lead to hypoxia at birth. There are also other factors that lead to cerebral injury, intrauterine hypoxia and hypoxia at birth. Postnatally, we can have hypoxia due to birth trauma, neonatal infection, cardiac disease of the baby that result in injury to the brain (due to hypoxia, emboli, ...). Sometimes also we don't have an explanation for the hypoxia that occured at birth but the important is to do the appropriate management. Some kids may have good recovery, other might pass away and others may develop cerebral palsy needing multidisciplinary approach : physiotherapy/ psychomotor therapist ("kinesitherapie" et "psychomotricite"), ergotherapy, speech therapy, ... Whatever is the cause, what counts is the management. Sometimes if we could determine the cause this will help us know the prognosis of the baby and how he will progress.
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