Nine Months : Breech Babies

What is a breech baby?

Most babies settle into the conventional head-down(cephalic) position in the womb by about 32 - 34 weeks. However, some babies remain bottom down inside your womb. Such babies are called breech babies.

What are the complications associated with a breech baby?

Since a breech baby lies bottom down in the womb, the legs are delivered first followed by the head. Some complications may arise when the head is being delivered. In normal cephalic cases when the baby is delivered head first, the remaining body just slides out of the womb. However, in breech babies, the vagina is not stretched enough with the delivery of the legs, and hence the head, which is the biggest part of the body to be delivered, may get stuck during the second stage of labour. Therefore, an episiotomy may be required before the head is delivered vaginally. Forceps (or assisted delivery) are commonly used.

When the baby is in such a position that a vaginal delivery cannot be attempted, you may be offered a caesarean.