Congenital Abnormalities In Newborns

As we know that no two babies are born similar, there are certain babies who are born far too different than others. What makes them apart are some of the body abnormalities that are present in their body right from the day they are born. These are called congenital abnormalities in medical terms. Congenital abnormalities are caused due to the complications caused during the labor period, hereditary problems or while the baby was developing in a womb. Given below are some of the few types of congenital abnormalities in babies:

• Spina Bifida

  Spina bifida is the problem caused around spine area at the time of the birth. It is a condition where a baby gets a raw swelling around spine area at birth. Such swelling at the time of the birth may result in paralysis of legs that may be partial or complete, it may even cause problems like inability to control the bladder functioning or inability to feel anything below the Spina bifida. Some cases of Spina bifida results in a build up and retention of water in the brain of babies and it is commonly known by the name Hydrocephalus. The swelling caused can be closed through an operation done by specialists in the field. This is an avoidable situation so pregnant women are usually prescribed folic acid supplements during early stages of pregnancy.

• Sickle Cell disease

  

  This disease is usually found in the people of west African or African Caribbean descent, it is a hereditary problem or condition. In this condition, the hemoglobin in red blood corpuscles disintegrates at a faster pace than the normal. Hemoglobin is an important element of body as it carries fresh oxygen to different parts of the body. The reduction in the hemoglobin can cause anemia and can also lead to blocking of blood vessels in the hands, legs and stomach. This problem can be treated with the help of painkillers; the attack can last for few days.

• Umbilical Hernias

  In Umbilical Hernias, some parts of digestive system lie outside the stomach cavity. The main cause to this problem is because the area around the navel is not very strong. Such problem around the navel area gets healed on its own and if it does not heal, it may require a surgery.

• Cystic Fibrosis

  This is one type of hereditary illness caused in the body of babies, the tissues in the body produces unusually thick mucus. The most commonly affected organs of the body are the lungs, intestines and pancreas. The lungs are vulnerable to infection if the air ducts are blocked. Commonly, children with such problem are unable to digest their food completely. They have a bad smelling bowel movements and constipation. Their weight is below the usual normal weight of the children of the same age. Cystic fibrosis has no cure but if it is detected in the early stages the lung damage can be reduced. The children with the disease are more vulnerable to chest infections and are treated with antibiotics. The kids are given chest physiotherapy on a regular basis to remove thick phlegm.

• Coeliac Disease

  The child’s intestine strongly reacts to gluten in the body under this condition. Gluten is one type of protein found in the wheat. The children with this abnormality have a severe case of diarrhea where the stools are pale and fatty and do not flush away easily. Usually the child does not put on weight according to the age, this illness can be detected through a blood test. The children with coeliac disease have to give up all the food containing gluten after the detection of the disease. When they stop eating such food, the stools are normal and they start putting on weight. There are large numbers of foods available in the markets today having gluten; the child has to give up this kind of food throughout his/her lifetime.

• Clubfoot

  

  The babies with clubfoot condition have their foot curved inwards or outwards, all the babies are checked for this after their birth. This is usually the case with the babies born in breech position, as there have been more frequent cases of clubfoot with such babies. The severe cases may require a surgery but most of the times, they can be made in a proper position through little or no treatment.

• Cleft Palate

  The cleft lip and the cleft palate are fused in this type of condition where a baby is unable to breastfeed. The corrective plastic surgery helps babies to come out of this deformity.

• Congenital dislocation of hip

  The babies with this type of deformity need to wear a special splint for sometime, some babies recover without any operation. If this abnormality is not detected in the early stages, it can give a bigger problem in the later stages of life. All the babies are test for this condition at the time of birth and later when they are eight weeks old. Such type of cases can be seen more amongst girls and breech babies.

• Cerebral Palsy

  

  It damages the parts of the brain that control the body movements. It can happen to child even before birth, during the birth or may be after two years of birth. Most of the cases do not get detected at birth but eventually are noticed as the child grows up. There are no specific reasons as to what causes cerebral palsy. Some tests can be conducted on child while they are eight weeks old.

The early detection for any type of diseases or abnormalities in a child calls for immediate treatment and they can be completely eliminated with proper treatment and doctor’s prescriptions.

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