Re:What is a forceps assisted birth?
Most of the time, the baby fits through the birth canal easily and there is no need for any external assistive devices. In rare cases, a doctor will use a forceps for delivery of a baby that is stuck in the birth canal although the vacuum-assisted birth is more common. During the delivery the doctor will place one half of a metal clamp on one side of the baby’s head and another half of the metal clamp on the other side of the baby’s head. The two halves of the clamp are connected on the outside of the mom and form a handle for the doctor to hold onto. The doctor then waits for a contraction and, while the mother pushes, the doctor pulls down and out on the forceps, delivering the head. He or she then lets the forceps fall apart and delivers the rest of the baby.
Forceps delivery does cause a risk to the baby in that it can be bruised from the forceps or otherwise injured from being forced through a birth canal that it wasn’t meant to fit in. The sticking of the shoulders can also be a complication because the baby is too big. In addition, this is really hard on the mom. It has the potential to cause deep lacerations in the mother’s vagina and perineum, necessitating a lot of repair after the baby is born. These are reasons why forceps deliveries are used as a last resort when the head is nearly out and just needs a boost in order to come out.
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