How does the umbilical cord affect birth complications?

Question

Hello doctor,

I gave birth when I was 18, and before that, I had a fall. A few days later, I noticed spotting and was admitted to the hospital. A senior doctor gave me a cervical sweep as I was due soon, and from that point, I felt pain the entire day, gradually worsening. I was passing blood and mucus, but an intern doctor insisted I was not in labor and even got angry when I disagreed. To prove me wrong, he put me on a monitor, but when the results came out, it showed I was in active labor, and he finally admitted me. I was in pain all day, but my contractions were not progressing. They had to burst my amniotic sac, and even after medication, I was stuck at 6 cm for hours. Eventually, I delivered, but the umbilical cord was wrapped around my baby’s neck. Thankfully, she is healthy now at three years old. However, a senior doctor later told me I had shown signs of a complicated birth and was furious at the intern. I want to understand what complications I may have had and if my baby was premature or if the difficulty was just due to the umbilical cord.

Please help.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I read your query and understand your concern.

Labor should be monitored once you are in the active stage and the water has been broken. The cord around the baby's neck is made out in a scan, not in the CTG (cardiotocograph) where we see heart rate but sometimes if the umbilical cord is getting compressed certain signs can be picked up. They need to check if the baby is in distress too by monitoring the pH of the baby's scalp and then if acidosis is the result it needs immediate delivery either way by cutting short the second stage by vacuum or forceps delivery or cesarean section. Maybe the CTG was not reactive and needed senior input or a minor finding of warning was not recognized.

I hope this helps.

Thank you.