Precipitous labor may also make your baby more susceptible to infection if they’re born in an unsterile environment, such as a car or bathroom. These include vaginal or cervical tearing, heavy bleeding, and shock following birth. Precipitous labor presents several risks for the mother. You have a history of precipitous labor.Your birth canal is compliant, making it easier for the baby to leave the womb.Your uterus is contracting very strongly, helping to push the baby out more rapidly.Precipitous labor, also called rapid labor, may occur for several reasons: With precipitous labor, these stages progress much more quickly, lasting only three to five hours. On average, the three stages of labor last about six to 18 hours. There are more risks to the mother and baby when a baby’s birth weight is greater than 9 pounds, 15 ounces. It also puts the baby at an increased risk for health problems after birth. This condition can cause problems during childbirth that can sometimes result in injury.

Approximately 9 percent of babies born worldwide have macrosomia. A newborn is diagnosed with macrosomia if they weigh more than 8 pounds, 13 ounces, regardless of when they’re born. Macrosomia occurs when a newborn is much larger than average. According to the American Pregnancy Association, CPD only occurs in approximately one of every 250 pregnancies. Cesarean delivery happens through an incision in the abdominal wall and uterus rather than through the vagina. As a result, women who experience CPD give birth by cesarean delivery. Unlike uterine hypocontractility, your doctor can’t correct CPD with oxytocin, so labor can’t progress normally after treatment. This condition is commonly called cephalopelvic disproportion (CPD).

If labor is still slow or stalled after your doctor gives you oxytocin, your baby’s head may be too large to fit through your pelvis. However, your doctor will carefully monitor this condition before giving you oxytocin. Doctors usually treat the condition with oxytocin to augment labor. Uterine hypocontractility is most common in women going through labor for the first time. Medications that lessen the intensity or frequency of the contractions can sometimes cause it. This type of abnormal labor is usually referred to as uterine inertia or uterine hypocontractility. Labor may start out well but stop or stall later if the uterus fails to contract sufficiently. The following types of abnormal labor may occur at any point during the three stages of labor: Uterine hypocontractility The dose necessary to cause sufficient contractions varies considerably from one woman to another. These contractions help push your baby out of the uterus and help dilate your cervix. Your can doctor give you oxytocin through a vein using a medication pump to initiate and maintain regular contractions of the uterus. This is a type of medication that stimulates uterine contractions to enhance labor. To determine whether abnormal labor can be corrected to allow for vaginal delivery, your doctor may decide to promote labor by administering oxytocin (Pitocin).

Arrest of descent is a diagnosis made in the second stage, after the cervix is completely dilated. This signifies that the baby hasn’t moved farther down the birth canal within the last hour. In an “arrest of descent”, the head of the fetus is in the same place in the birth canal during the first and second examinations, which your doctor performs one hour apart. This means that the cervix hasn’t dilated at all over the course of two hours, indicating labor has stopped. When labor stops altogether, it’s called arrest of labor.Ī few examples of abnormal labor patterns may help you understand how the condition is diagnosed:Īn example of an “arrest of dilation” is when the cervix is 6 centimeters dilated during the first and second examinations, which your doctor performs one to two hours apart. When labor slows down, it’s called protraction of labor. Abnormal labor may be referred to as dysfunctional labor, which simply means difficult labor or childbirth.

Precipitate labour signs and symptoms