Birth Injuries in Neonates.

Birth injury is defined as the structural destruction or functional deterioration of the neonate’s body due to a traumatic event at birth. Some of these injuries are avoidable when appropriate care is available and others are part of the delivery process that can occur even when clinicians practice extreme caution. Amniocentesis and intrauterine transfusions can cause injuries before birth, and these and any injuries that occur following neonatal resuscitation procedures are not considered birth injuries. However, injuries occurring from fetal scalp electrodes and intrapartum heart ratemonitoring are considered birth injuries. Over the past AUTHOR DISCLOSURE Drs Akangire and Carter have disclosed no financial relationships relevant to this article. This commentary does not contain a discussion of an unapproved/investigative use of a commercial product/device.