A term that means difficult or abnormal labour (see childbirth). Dystocia may occur, for example, if the baby is very large, or if the mother’s pelvis is abnormally shaped or too small for the baby to pass through. (See also childbirth, complications of.)
Slow or painful birth of a child. This may occur because the baby is large and/or the mother’s pelvis is small or wrongly shaped for the baby to pass through easily. Abnormal presentation of the baby is another cause (see PREGNANCY AND LABOUR; BREECH PRESENTATION).
n. difficult birth, caused by abnormalities in the fetus or the mother (see obstructed labour). Dystocia may arise due to uterine *inertia, which is more common in a first labour; abnormal fetal lie or presentation; absolute or relative *cephalopelvic disproportion; or (rarely) a massive fetal tumor, such as a sacrococcygeal teratoma. Synthetic oxytocin (Syntocinon) is commonly used to treat uterine inertia. However, pregnancies complicated by dystocia often end with assisted deliveries, including forceps, ventouse, or (commonly) Caesarean section. See also shoulder dystocia.
a difficult birth (see dystocia) in which the anterior or, less commonly, the posterior fetal shoulder impacts on the maternal symphysis or sacral promontory. It is an obstetric emergency and is diagnosed when the shoulders fail to deliver after the fetal head and when gentle downward traction has failed. Additional obstetric manoeuvres (e.g. *McRobert’s manoeuvre) are required to release the shoulders from below the pubic symphysis. It occurs in approximately 1% of vaginal births. There are well-recognized risk factors, such as maternal diabetes and obesity and fetal *macrosomia. There can be a high *perinatal mortality rate and morbidity associated with the condition; the most common fetal injuries are to the brachial plexus, causing an *Erb’s palsy or *Klumpke’s paralysis. Maternal morbidity is also increased, particularly *postpartum haemorrhage.... shoulder dystocia
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