J Korean Neurosurg Soc.  2022 May;65(3):342-347. 10.3340/jkns.2022.0045.

Head Injury during Childbirth

• Chong S

• KMID: 2529577
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3340/jkns.2022.0045

Abstract

Head injuries are the most common type of birth injuries. Among them, most of the injuries is limited to the scalp. and the prognosis is good enough to be unnoticed in some cases. Intracranial injuries caused by excessive forces during delivery are rare. However, since some of them can be fatal, it is necessary to suspect it at an early stage and evaluate thoroughly if there are abnormal findings in the patient.

Keyword

Birth injuries; Birth trauma; Intracranial hemorrhages; Scalp injuries; Skull fractures

Figure

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  Fig. 1. A : A brain computed tomography image of 26-day-old girl who presented with swelling of her head not crossing suture lines. Additional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (B-D) were obtained due to progression of swelling with fever. MRI demonstrates thickening of the wall with septation (B) and fluid-fluid level with diffusion restriction (C and D) which suggests combined infection. Further aspiration with culture study revealed that infected cephalhematoma caused by Escherichia coli.

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  Fig. 2. A : A simple skull radiograph of 2-day-old girl shows depressed skull fractures (arrows). B : On follow up images at 6-month-old age demonstrates quite improvements (arrows).

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  Fig. 3. An axial (A) and a coronal (B) computed tomography (CT) images of 2-day-old girl who presented with lethargy and intermittent apnea. Images show subdural hemorrhages on bilateral convexities and along the falx and the tentorium. The physical examination revealed a tense and bulging anterior fontanelle. The patient was treated by burr holetrephination and drainage of subdural hemorrhage. A postoperative CT image (C) reveals improvement of mass effect. Courtesy of Dr. Youngbeom Seo; Department of Neurosurgery, Yeungnam University Hospital.

Reference

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