Every expectant mother is afraid of pathologies of pregnancy and childbirth and wants to prevent them.
One of these pathologies is fetal hypoxia and hypoxia during childbirth, which can lead to disturbances in the functioning of many organs and tissues, including the brain.
The consequences of such damage can affect for a long time, sometimes for life.
Causes of hypoxic damage to the central nervous system in the newborn
The central nervous system is the first to suffer from a lack of oxygen, which can be caused by various factors during pregnancy and childbirth. It can be:
• During pregnancy:
-Gestosis in the later stages;
- Premature detachment of the placenta, the threat of abortion;
- Heart defects in mother and fetus;
- Anemia in the mother;
- Lack or excess of amniotic fluid;
-Maternal intoxication (drug, occupational, smoking);
-Resus conflict of mother and fetus;
Infectious diseases of the mother;
• During childbirth:
- entangling the umbilical cord of the fetus;
-Weakness of labor;
-Long birth;
- Bleeding in the mother;
-Natal neck injuries.
As you can see, most of the dangerous factors affect the baby’s health before birth, and only a few during birth.
To exacerbate the course of pregnancy pathologies leading to hypoxic damage to the central nervous system in a newborn, overweight, chronic diseases of the mother or her too young or too mature age (under 18 or over 35) can. And with any type of hypoxia, the brain is affected first.
Symptoms of Brain Damage
In the first hours and days after birth signs of disorders of the cardiovascular system come to the fore, and symptoms of a hypoxic lesion of the central nervous system begin to manifest themselves later.
If brain damage is caused by a pathology of pregnancy, then the child may be lethargic, he has weakened or completely absent reflexes, which should be in a healthy newborn. With the pathology that occurred during childbirth, the baby does not immediately begin to breathe after birth, the skin has a bluish tint, the frequency of respiratory movements is lower than normal. And physiological reflexes will also be reduced - according to these signs, oxygen starvation can be suspected.
At an older age hypoxia of the brain, if it was not cured on time, manifests itself as a slowdown in psychoemotional development up to severe forms of dementia, and motor disorders. In this case, the presence of organic pathology is possible - brain cysts, hydrocephalus (especially often occurs with intrauterine infections). Severe brain hypoxia can be fatal.
Diagnosis of hypoxic damage to the central nervous system in a newborn
The first diagnostic procedure that is performed for all newborns immediately after birth is an assessment of his condition on the Apgar scale, which takes into account such vital indicators as breathing, heartbeat, skin condition, muscle tone and reflexes. A healthy child is gaining 9-10 points on the Apgar scale, signs of hypoxic damage to the central nervous system can significantly reduce this indicator, which should be the reason for more accurate examinations.
Doppler ultrasound makes it possible to assess the state of the blood vessels of the brain and identify their congenital anomalies, which may become one of the causes of fetal and newborn hypoxia.
Ultrasound, CT and MRI of the brain can identify various organic pathologies of the nervous system - cysts, hydrocephalus, ischemic sites, underdevelopment of certain departments, tumors. The difference in the principles of action of these methods allows you to see the most complete picture of brain damage.
To assess damage to the functions of the nervous system, neurography and myography are used - these are methods based on exposure to muscle and nerve tissue by electric current, and allowing to trace how different parts of nerves and muscles react to it. In the case of congenital hypoxic damage to the central nervous system in a newborn, this method allows you to understand how much the peripheral nervous system has suffered, and how much the child has a great chance of full physical development.
In addition, a biochemical blood test, urinalysis are prescribed to identify biochemical disorders associated with brain hypoxia.
Treatment of hypoxia in newborns
Treatment of hypoxic brain damage depends on its causes and severity. If hypoxia occurs during childbirth and is not accompanied by organic pathology of the brain, blood vessels, heart, lungs, or spine, then depending on the degree, it can either pass on its own within a few hours (mild, 7-8 Apgar), or require treatment in an oxygen chamber with normal or elevated pressure (hyperbaric oxygenation).
Organic pathology, which is the cause of constant brain hypoxia (heart defects, respiratory system, neck injuries) is usually treated surgically. The question of the possibility of surgery and its timing depends on the condition of the child. The same applies to the organic pathology of the brain (cysts, hydrocephalus) that occurs as a result of fetal hypoxia. In most cases, the earlier the operation is performed, the greater the child’s chances of full development.
Prevention of hypoxic brain damage
Since the consequences of fetal hypoxia of the fetus are extremely destructive for the child’s brain in the future, a pregnant woman must be very careful about her health. The influence of factors capable of disrupting the normal course of pregnancy should be minimized - avoid stress, eat well, exercise to the best of your ability, give up alcohol and smoking, and attend a maternity clinic on time.
In severe gestosis, as well as with signs of premature placental abruption and the threat of abortion - abdominal pain, bloody discharge from the genital tract, a sharp decrease in blood pressure, sudden nausea and vomiting for no reason - you should immediately consult a doctor. Perhaps it will be recommended to lie down for preservation - this recommendation should not be neglected. The complex of therapeutic measures carried out in the hospital will allow avoiding severe fetal hypoxia and its consequences in the form of congenital brain pathologies.
Ultrasound, which is done in the last weeks of pregnancy, allows you to identify such potentially dangerous conditions as the entanglement of the umbilical cord, which during birth can prevent the baby from taking the first breath, pelvic or lateral presentation, which is also dangerous because hypoxia of the newborn will develop in childbirth. To correct a dangerous presentation, there are complexes of exercises, and if they were ineffective, a cesarean section is recommended. It is also recommended for entwining the umbilical cord.
Measuring the size of the fetus and pelvis of a woman allows you to determine the anatomically and clinically narrow pelvis - the mismatch of the size of the pelvis to the size of the head of the child. In this case, childbirth will naturally lead to injuries in both the mother and the baby, or may be completely impossible. The safest delivery method in this case is cesarean section.
During childbirth, it is necessary to monitor the intensity of contractions - if it becomes insufficient for rapid delivery, labor is stimulated. A long stay of the fetus in the birth canal can lead to the development of cerebral hypoxia, since the placenta no longer supplies oxygen to its body, and the first breath is possible only after birth. Exercise to prepare for childbirth allows you to avoid this condition.
