Birth trauma includes all physical injuries sustained by the fetus as a consequence of the birth process.
Most birth traumas are self-limited and have a favourable outcome. The prevalence of injuries in descending order is: clavicular fracture, facial nerve injury, brachial plexus injury, intracranial injury, bruising and skin lacerations.
Death from birth trauma is most likely when the brain and/or spinal cord are damaged. Such an injury is really infrequent nowadays with wide use of cesarean section.
Birth trauma is closely related to birth asphyxia because many of the conditions which predispose to birth asphyxia also directly increase the risk of trauma during delivery. Trauma also causes shock with anoxic- ischemic damage to the fetal tissues. Separating of effects of birth asphyxia from those of birth trauma is often impossible.
Factors predisposing to birth injury: