Assisted Delivery How can a doctor assist in the birth of the baby?

Sometimes during a vaginal birth the mother-to-be may require assistance to finish birthing her baby. When you have been pushing for quite some time and your doctor feels the need to intervene, he may use forceps or a vacuum extractor to assist.

Your doctor may decide to assist the delivery if there is a sudden change in your baby's heart rate or a condition in the mother that needs immediate delivery. A healthcare provider may also use forceps or a vacuum if the baby is turned in an awkward or difficult position. Too much anesthesia can cause the mother to ineffectively push and the doctor will need to assist with these instruments as well.

If your doctor recommends an assisted delivery and your membranes have not ruptured, he will break your water first. If you haven't received an epidural, your doctor will probably give you a local anesthetic before the procedure. Because the instruments require a certain amount of room in the vagina, you might be given an episiotomy beforehand.

Forceps are tools that are placed on the baby's head to turn the baby or assist the mother with the birth of her baby. The forceps look like a pair of curved spoon-shaped surgical tongs. Generally, forceps will be used when the baby is already in the lower portion of the birth canal. During a contraction and while the mother is pushing, the doctor will grasp the handles and pull the baby down and out of the birth canal. Forceps may leave small red areas on the baby's cheeks, but they will fade away within a few days. You may also notice blisters on the scalp from where the forceps grasped the head. Mothers that require the use of forceps are more likely to experience cervical tears, vaginal tears, perineal tears and tears within the anus.

If your doctor decides to use a vacuum extractor, a flexible rounded suction cup will be applied to the baby's head. There is an electric or manual pump that creates vacuum pressure and holds the cup tightly on the baby's head. While the doctor pulls the handle, you will need to push. This will help the baby move down the birth canal and out of the vagina. The baby may have a bruise on his head, but it will gradually fade away within a few weeks. Mothers that require the use of a vacuum may have an increased chance of perineal tearing, vaginal tearing and tears within the anus.

Comments: Assisted Delivery

Comments 1 to 24 of about 25.
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clairelouise - 11 days ago.
I had an assisted delivery with my daughter in 2001, After a 43hr labour she they decided that hrs of pushing she was stuck and needed assisitance, a c-section was discused and they looked and decided they could pull her out, I was topped up on my epidural,And was given a numbing injection on my vagina so they could cut me, they said it would sting but i didnt feel a thing and and the cut was small aswell, The forcepts were used and with 2 pushes my daughter was born, The only marks on her were 2 small but very red marks either side of her head, It didnt bother her at first and i was fine, But afterwards once on the ward i was struggling to settle her and this went on for 3 weeks where i also couldnt move, it turned out i was stitched up wrongly afterwards and the birth had distressed my daughter, After about 6 weeks we were back to normal though we had to also deal with sever colic, I dont like the idea of forcepts at all or the vacuum,think it must be very uncomfortable for the baby really, and it doesnt look nice either,

lindamc - 21 days ago.
I had a vacuum assisted delivery. i spiked a fever, and it was necessary to get her out... she wasn't moving. If I didn't have an epidural, it probably would've been very painful. I do think that my 4th degree tear happened because of the need for the vacuum. She is here and healthy and that's all that matters!

slim - 31 days ago.
oh no i'm really scared now. i hope i dont have to have any of these :-( they look awful!!!! i just really dont think the baby is gona get out of me without some assistance. i havent put any weight on in my body and i have the smallest hips. o no im gona cry!!!!!!

amberizzle - 31 days ago.
Bakersmommy: I had a doctor try to convince me that a forceps delivery was better for me than a c-section. I asked her if she was stoned. I'm so sorry that you had to be cut like that. I can't imagine how painful and uncomfortable that was. I'm glad to know about your experience though, because it just confirms that I'm doing the best thing for me and my baby girl.

bakersmommy - 31 days ago.
I had forceps delivery..not fun! After 36 hours of labour( no joke) and 3 failed epidurals they decided on a c-section but I had to be knocked out( noway was that happeneing) so they opted for forceps. They cut me ALL THE WAY DOWN and pulled him out. My son had to spend 3 days in Special care because his face was so swollen adn cut from the forceps..not to mention I had 46 stitches to sew me back up. It was very uncomfortable and I don't wish this pain on anyone!! Thank goodness they are giving me a c-section next time!!

bonnieheather - 80 days ago.
yet another thing that puts me off finding out im pregnant my 10lb baby getting wrenched out my uk size 6 frame.. took me three years to get over that one..i dont think doctors realise what they are putting you through. i should of had a section his head, then his shoulders then even his body got stuck in me.. was an ill made decision that got me a 6 page apology from the hospital.

charlim - 88 days ago.
after 22 hours of labor, and pushing for 3 hours. the dr. used the vacuum! he had a huge bruise on the top of his head that lasted for about a week and a half then started to go away. he is now 1 month and you can't tell! his head is still a little long but with each passing day it gets more round!! he had jaundice pretty bad!!!!

babylinda - 88 days ago.
i had a vacuum delivery with my last baby, because the heart rate was going down i tore very badly, and heamorraged. The baby was fine just a bruise on the top of his head. I was taken 2 theater straight away and the docs lost count after 100 stitches!! a year later i had 2 go back 2 hospital to get everything repared down there, im fine now but im 40 weeks pregnant now and am dreading giving birth this time.

hmbMom - 89 days ago.
I delivered my little boy with the help of a vacuum. I had lots of tearing and huge bruising. He had a bit of a cone head but it went away after about 3 days. Luckily the vacuum really helped him come out. He was only 5lbs. 12oz., he just did not want to come out. I had an epidural and was induced. He developed jaundice.

Trini - 93 days ago.
I pushed for 3 hours and they attempted a vaccum extraction. That didnt' work. I ended up getting a c-section. He had a huge bruise on his head which made jaundice flare up quickly. I didn't get to spend much time with him in the hospital, he was under the billirubin lights as much as possible. I wouldn't recommend this unless you know your baby will be delivered.

marias1983 - 94 days ago.
with my son, i pushed 3 hours and they used foreceps. he was absolutely perfect. not even a cone-head! even at 9 weeks my doc has alread suggested a c-sec to avoid a difficult labor and delivery this time. thats what i am scared about!

marias1983 - 94 days ago.
with my son, i pushed 3 hours and they used foreceps. he was absolutely perfect. not even a cone-head! even at 9 weeks my doc has alread suggested a c-sec to avoid a difficult labor and delivery this time. thats what i am scared about!

marias1983 - 94 days ago.
with my son, i pushed 3 hours and they used foreceps. he was absolutely perfect. not even a cone-head! even at 9 weeks my doc has alread suggested a c-sec to avoid a difficult labor and delivery this time. thats what i am scared about!

kerriberri74 - 103 days ago.
When I had my first one, She flipped face up going threw the birth canal. The Dr used forcepts ,and vaccum, as well as pushing for 5 hours, and a nurse pretty much jumping on my stomach. She was very brusied and cut on the sides of her head from the forcepts, and a huge blood blister on the top of her head from the vaccum. She has one tiny scare, that is not real noticable. She looked like she was beat up, but I feel without the assistance of those things, she would not be here today.

ukdutypaid - 103 days ago.
my first son and my twin boy were born with vontuse (vacumn) and both are wonderful, one is 9 and the other 5.. i would love to blame some things on using a vacum... messy rooms, naughty sometimes, but i cant, lol, its scary but think of it like this... everyone looks after themselves in this day and age.... if anything would get someone into trouble they certainly wouldnt use it, people get sued all the time for silly things.. our babys are so important to us of course were going to be concerned, thats what makes us good mums,... u see how rough they look like there being when the babys come out, they pull them here and there, pulling there neck ... there not really that gentle, lol, everything is still soft, both sons had a bit of a cone shaped head for a few days, thats how soft the skull is, and it goes back to noraml before u know it... sometimes assistance is needed.. both my sons heartbeats dropped and i was very glad of the help.x.x.x i prefer vacumn to forceps

natalie75 - 104 days ago.
They used forceps wtih my son and I feel it had alot to do with the epidural. I am going to do everything I can to avoid this with this baby.

lizzie287 - 105 days ago.
I was born with forceps. Even though there were no marks or lasting effects with me my mom said it was an excruciating experience that she wouldn't wish on anyone. I've heard horror stories from other mothers of the effects the forceps had on their babies (dented heads, etc.) and it just terrifies me. I just keep praying with my baby that I don't NEED an epidural or anything like that because I'd really prefer NOT to need forceps or a vacuum.

bigbellyjess - 105 days ago.
I am going nuts thinking about the dr. having to use either on me. I can't come to terms with the idea of my vagina splitting!!!!! I told my husband before I accidentally got pregnant that I was starting to think about not having a baby because I was to scared to go through labor!!! I can't handle it.

newMAMAtiff - 120 days ago.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT HURTS THE BABY!

anikarenee - 162 days ago.
We had to use the vaccum with my first duaghter. I think that the epidural I recieved made it harder for me to control my body and pushing.

jaxonsmom - 206 days ago.
I had a very difficult birth with my son. They tried using the vacuum first and it kept popping off his head because he had so much hair, the cord was wrapped around his neck twice and he was a very big baby (9lbs-6ozs). Then they used the forceps and pretty much had to pull him out of me. Luckily, my epidural worked very well, so I didn't feel my HUGE episiotomy until the meds wore off. I'm hoping that this birth goes much smoother!

peanutmommie - 219 days ago.
i had a forceps delivery w/ my son (4 years ago on Mon!) and he didn't have any marks at all. (i tore very badly) but we are both fine! hopefully i won't have to do that next time though!

Jeanette - 219 days ago.
My sister was extracted with forceps. She has dents in her forhead to this day. She's 28.

threeangelsofmine - 220 days ago.
i had forceps used on both my previous deliveries. with my son he would keep crowning and then slipping back into the canal and he was a preemie so they were worried about him and wanted to get him out. and with my second the epidural did not work and i was in extreme pain so they used the forceps again. its not as bad as it sounds i only had minimal tearing and my kids were just fine the bruises and or red marks were gone before we even left the hospital to go home

bailey2006 - 224 days ago.
dear lord! let that not be me.


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