With this understanding comes accountability, and parents are encouraged to become activists for their children more than ever before. Part of it is understanding what to look for to avoid any birth accidents.

Statistics On Injuries At Birth In General

In the U. S., 6 to 8 out of every one thousand births occur with an injury. This means that one out of every 9,714 people in America were delivered with a birth injury.

Statistics On Injuries At Birth

A quality report on national healthcare states that male infants suffered 6.68 of every one thousand injuries at birth in the United States, which is 1.5 more than female infants.

There are one-third fewer birth traumas occurring in for-profit private hospitals(4.33) in the same year than non-profit hospitals(7.15.)

Furthermore, according to the same report, the fewer beds in a hospital, the higher the risk factor of birth injuries, based on the statistics.

The Most Commonly Occurring Birth Accidents

The following are the top ten most common birth traumas:

  • Injury to the Brachial Plexus
  • Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)
  • Bones are broken.
  • Cephalohematoma (a form of hemorrhage) 
  • Succedaneum Caput
  • Intracranial hemorrhage (a form of a blood clot that occurs within the skull.)
  • Bleeding in the subconjunctival
  • Injuries to the spinal cord
  • Cerebral Palsy (a condition that affects the brain.)

Mothers’ Information

Birth accidents are most serious among mothers between the ages of 25 and 34 who have used a birthing tool, and lowest among mothers between the ages of 40 and 54 who have used a birthing tool.

However, injuries are only high for mothers with no instrument assistance during vaginal deliveries between 25 and 29.

Injuries Sustained By Mothers

Mothers being injured during vaginal births with no instrument assistance was 30% lower than the rate for mothers in instrument-assisted vaginal births between 2000 and 2006.

The risk of trauma in a direction procedure, heightened with the mother’s age, despite the fact that cesarean section is widely regarded as the safest method of delivery.

Birth injuries were less common in mothers with no health coverage or Medicaid than in mothers with private insurance.

Regions and Races

In comparison to Asian-Pacific Islanders and Whites, Black and Hispanic patients have lower rates of birth wounds. Birth accidents are 33 percent more common in rural areas than in cities.

However, birth injuries in the Northeast are 24-32 percent higher than in the West, South, and Midwest and include infant birth traumas and trauma to mothers caused by instruments.

Overall, almost 160 thousand injuries sustained by newborns and mothers might have been prevented. Identifying and preparing for obstetrical threats may theoretically prevent close to half of all birth injuries.

These kinds of statistics about birth harms are more than troubling. This knowledge demonstrates how dangerous medical malpractice can be.