Abnormalities and complications of labor and delivery should be diagnosed and managed as early as possible.
Most of the following complications are evident before onset of labor:
Some of the following complications develop or become evident during labor or delivery:
Some complications may require alternatives to spontaneous labor and vaginal delivery. Alternatives include
The neonatal care team should be informed when alternative delivery methods are to be used so they can be ready to treat any neonatal complications.
Some complications (eg, postpartum hemorrhage Postpartum Hemorrhage Postpartum hemorrhage is blood loss of > 1000 mL or blood loss accompanied by symptoms or signs of hypovolemia within 24 hours of birth. Diagnosis is clinical. Treatment depends on etiology... read more , inverted uterus Inverted Uterus Inverted uterus is a rare medical emergency in which the corpus turns inside out and protrudes into the vagina or beyond the introitus. The uterus is most commonly inverted when too much traction... read more ) occur immediately after delivery of the fetus and around the time the placenta is delivered.
Some placental abnormalities, such as placenta accreta Placenta Accreta Placenta accreta is an abnormally adherent placenta, resulting in delayed delivery of the placenta. Placental function is normal, but trophoblastic invasion extends beyond the normal boundary... read more , may be discovered during pregnancy or only after delivery.
See also neonatal resuscitation Neonatal Resuscitation Extensive physiologic changes accompany the birth process, sometimes unmasking conditions that posed no problem during intrauterine life. For that reason, a person with neonatal resuscitation... read more , perinatal problems Birth Injuries The forces of labor and delivery occasionally cause physical injury to the infant. The incidence of neonatal injury resulting from difficult or traumatic deliveries is decreasing due to increasing... read more 
, meconium aspiration syndrome Meconium Aspiration Syndrome Intrapartum meconium aspiration can cause inflammatory pneumonitis and mechanical bronchial obstruction, causing a syndrome of respiratory distress. Findings include tachypnea, rales and rhonchi... read more , and preeclampsia and eclampsia Preeclampsia and Eclampsia Preeclampsia is new-onset or worsening of existing hypertension with proteinuria after 20 weeks gestation. Eclampsia is unexplained generalized seizures in patients with preeclampsia. Diagnosis... read more .
