When birth doesn’t go as planned

Sometimes pregnancy or childbirth doesn’t go as planned. In every situation, a specialist team is waiting for you at our Woman Mother Child-center.

Baby in Breech

If a baby is lying in a breech, our doctors make an attempt to turn the child into a head-down position (version attempt). This takes place during the version consultation hour by highly experienced perinatologists or gynecologists who specialize in pregnancies. We speak of a breech when a child in the uterus has its head up and buttocks or legs down.

Because this is disadvantageous for childbirth, there is usually an attempt to turn the child through pressure on the abdomen. The perinatologist grasps the buttocks of the baby with one hand and tries to push them up. With the other hand, the head of the baby is pushed down. An attempt is made to roll the baby forward or backwards until the head is down.

A version attempt at MMC has a high success rate:
• 50-55% in women who are pregnant for the first time
• 80-85% in women who have been pregnant before
• On average, the chance of success is 66%. This is well above the national average of 40%.

Read about Juan Chengs experience with her baby lying in breech.

Cesarean Section

If the baby cannot be born naturally, through the vagina, the gynecologist may opt for a cesarean section. Your child will then be born through an abdominal operation. Sometimes a cesarean is already decided on during the pregnancy. The doctor can also opt for cesarean delivery during childbirth, for example, because dilation or expulsion does not occur or because the condition of the baby deteriorates.

Immediately after the cesarean section, the child is placed on the mother’s chest after being checked by the pediatrician. There is immediate skin-to-skin contact. After the operation, the whole family goes to the recovery room. The baby is therefore not separated from the parents at any time.

After this, you usually end up in a room close to the Obstetric High Care (high care for pregnant women). There, your baby is also with you all the time. Your partner can stay overnight in the room.

Assisted Vaginal Delivery

If you have pushed for a long time during childbirth but made little progress, an assisted delivery may be necessary. This means the doctor will make use of aids. This is usually a suction cup which is placed on the baby’s head. During the pushing, the doctor pulls on the suction cup, after which the baby is usually born without problems. In some cases, the doctor may choose to do a forceps delivery. This method is not used very much nowadays, except for on a premature baby.

Inducing Labor

Inducing childbirth is the artificial triggering of contractions. Some reasons for this are: if you are long overdue, have high blood pressure or if your child has a growth deficit.