A child during childbirth (during passage through the birth canal) can receive various injuries, one of them is a cephalohematoma. In a newborn, on the head, it appears as a blood clot between the outer surface of the skull and periosteum. In this case, blood often accumulates on the parietal bone, its accumulation on the occipital, frontal or temporal bones is less common.
It is worth noting that a cephalohematoma on the head of a newborn is often not found at all in the first days after birth due to the fact that it is covered by a
birth tumor. It is diagnosed only when the swelling disappears and the blood clot accumulated over the periosteum begins to increase in size. With all this, no changes occur with the skin surface above the hematoma, that is, the tumor does not spread beyond the borders of the affected bone.
Cephalohematoma in a newborn on the head: causes
If the size of the birth canal is incommensurable with the size of the baby himself, during the birth the baby can undergo mechanical damage, which will lead to the formation of cephalohematomas. A number of factors provoking this phenomenon can be noted. These include the incorrect position of the fetus (when the child’s presentation is facial, pelvic, parietal), too large a fetus, malformations, too quick birth in a woman giving birth for the first time, a postponed pregnancy, the mature age of the woman in labor, a flat or narrow pelvis in the woman in labor, or damage pelvic bones.
In addition, for a number of reasons, a child may experience a hypoxic birth injury, and as a result a cephalohematoma will form in the newborn on the head. Such a development of events can happen due to the entanglement of an umbilical cord around the baby’s neck, which makes it difficult to breathe; sunken tongue, which may block access to the trachea; accumulations in the oral cavity of newborn mucus.
Treatment
If the size of the cephalohematoma is small and it does not cause discomfort to the baby, no special treatment is required - such a tumor will resolve itself after one to two months. In some cases, the doctor may prescribe vitamin K, which improves blood coagulation, and calcium gluconate, which strengthens the vascular walls. In the case of significant sizes of cephalohematomas, it can be opened with a special needle and removal of contents. After this, a pressure bandage is applied to the newborn's head.
Kefalogematoma in a child: consequences
If a baby loses a lot of blood as a result of a birth injury, he may have hemoglobin lowering and, as a result, arrhythmia. If the cephalohematoma in a newborn on the head is large, it can leak into nearby tissues. In this case, the tumor breaks down into hemoglobin particles, which then penetrate the bloodstream. Such processes can cause jaundice in the child. If the resorption of the blood is delayed for a long time and entails complications, there is a risk of deformation of the child’s skull. Also, this is fraught with the development of the inflammatory process, and, accordingly, suppuration.