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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Breech Baby and Birth Defects?

19 replies

Torina · 31/12/2021 18:42

I'm 36 weeks and the baby is still breech. I just have this feeling that she won't turn, and I am so worried about the increased risk of birth defects. I can't help but feel sure that there is something wrong with her, some chromosomal problem or something, that is stopping her turning. I guess I've read too much.

OP posts:

SweetBabyCheeses99 · 31/12/2021 18:44

Well it is statistically more likely yes, but wouldn’t they have also picked up on these things already at one of your scans or screening?

Original poster

Torina · 31/12/2021 18:46

I guess, but not everything would have shown up. There are lots of chromosomal defects. I think there are also links to autism as well, which wouldn't show up. Obviously, we will love her whether she is neurotypical or not, but we already have some challenging family circumstances, so I guess I have a lot of anxiety surrounding this and how we will manage if she is not neurotypical. It's causing me so much worry.

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Yebbie · 31/12/2021 18:50

My baby stayed breech throughout the entire pregnancy. He never turned - not once! I had a lot of pressure put on me by a consultant to have an ECV but I just had a bad gut feeling and I didn't do it. I did try moxibustion which achieved nothing! I had quite a bit of pain with it, his head was firmly lodged in my ribs. I had a caesarean due to his positioning, I remember they said I'd feel light tugging and I felt like I was almost being thrown up and down! He was very lodged in my ribs and had the cord around his neck multiple times, there was a few horrible moments of panic but he was absolutely fine and had no issues. It's not always a bad sign, and don't let anyone pressure you into an ECV if you aren't comfortable. A lot of consultants will try x

1AngelicFruitCake · 31/12/2021 18:51

I had a breech baby and no problems at all. They were initially concerned about her hips but no problems found. Try not to worry.

PintOfBovril · 31/12/2021 18:51

Oh OP poor you. I could have written your post when I was expecting DS. He was extended breech and didn't shift! I declined the ECV offered because I had a gut feeling that it wouldn't work ( and I was right, his cord was so short it snapped during my c section!) But at the last scanning appt the sonographer made an off hand comment when I asked about why he might be breech along the lines of "could be a neuro defect..." Which planted a seed of worry that became a massive looming black ball of anxiety. I was googling like crazy. I just wanted to know what to expect if everything wasn't okay.

In the end I went for a private reassurance scan and the midwife sonographer took her time to scan for lots of "soft markers" for common chromosome issues such as femur length etc and then talked through all the reassuring points too. I came away feeling calmer and more positive and I was so glad I saw her. I think it was about £70 and I'm happy to signpost you if you're in the south east.

My breech baby is now 2 and very bright, cheeky and hates being upside down even now!!

Yebbie · 31/12/2021 18:51

Too add he's 2.5 now, a total lovely boy who is a complete chatterbox, we can have conversations with him all of a sudden and it's amazing! He has hit every milestone and is completely NT x

PintOfBovril · 31/12/2021 18:53

Ah yes as per the PPs, the rib pain was awful! They had a job getting him out in the end because he was wedged so high, they'd never have managed an ECV.
He had a routine hip scan as all breech babies do and all was fine.

Dozer · 31/12/2021 18:53

Lots of babies are just breech!

Original poster

Torina · 31/12/2021 18:55

@Yebbie @PintOfBovril Were the issues with the cords not picked up on the scans? This is another thing that has been worrying me, that maybe her cord is wrapped around her neck and she isn't getting enough oxygen as it's so compressed? But then I keep thinking that surely they'd have seen that on the scan?

OP posts:

Wishihadanalgorithm · 31/12/2021 18:55

DD(8) was very much breech and born by c section. No problems. I wouldn’t have the ECV as I just don’t think they are safe for the baby. I read a very sad story on here about a woman losing her daughter due to placenta abruption caused by the ECV. This was the day before I had to decide about the ECV. It wasn’t worth the risk so I picked the day for the c-section and everything went swimmingly.

Good luck OP.

polkadotpixie · 31/12/2021 18:56

My sister was actually born breech 34 years ago, she's completely healthy and totally neurotypical. I was head down and am slightly neurodiverse

WhiteCatmas · 31/12/2021 18:56

My once transverse lying babies are now moody teens. Hopefully your baby will turn

Yebbie · 31/12/2021 18:59

My consultant wouldn't give any information on whether the cord was round his neck in any of my third trimester scans, which were every week or so towards the end due to other reasons. He said if he told me the cord was or wasn't around the neck it only stands for as long as they are scanning me and could be totally different 5 minutes later. I'm assuming he didn't see anything of too much concern, as I imagine they'd have to tell me. It did make me uneasy and was another reason I refused the ECV. I imagine if the cord was causing any damage the baby would be in distress and it would be picked up. It is such a worrying time, my heart goes out to you but the likelihood is everything will be absolutely fine.

I felt traumatised after that pregnancy! But here I am pregnant again 2.5 years later, so you forget quick

Original poster

Torina · 31/12/2021 19:08

@Yebbie Yeah, these were my thoughts about an ECV as well. I'm okay with a section anyway.

I really hope all is okay. This is my first pregnancy that has made it this far, and it is so nerve-wracking. I hate having the sole responsibility all the time of assessing movements, knowing whether it's discharge or amniotic fluid etc. I feel like if my husband and I were sharing carrying her, we could at least discuss these worries together! I know they will only get worse after she's born, but at least I will have someone to share them with then!

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CurtainTroubles · 31/12/2021 19:13

This reply has been deleted

Withdrawn at the user's request

Katrinawaves · 31/12/2021 19:16

My two breach babies born by C section are both NT. My head down VBAC baby has autism and severe learning difficulties

Fuuuuuckit · 31/12/2021 19:21

Both my babies didn't shift position at all for weeks before delivery (they were the right way up though) and it turned out that they both had cord wrapped tight twice which meant they couldn't move at all, and cords had to be cut to enable their bodies to be delivered.

The chances of anything being wrong are incredibly small op x

allfurcoatnoknickers · 01/01/2022 19:34

DS was breech the whole time. My consultant mentioned a ECV, but said she didn't think it would work because he was in a weird position (one foot straight down, one foot in front of his face) and because I had really strong stomach muscles and a flat bump so there wasn't a lot of room to maneuver. We didn't bother and I had him by ELCS.

When he was a few weeks old, we had to take him for a hip scan but he was fine! I don't think anyone mentioned a risk of birth defects to me and I had THREE consultants involved over my pregnancy because I was such a hot mess (not related to DS being breech).

Original poster

Torina · 01/01/2022 21:04

@allfurcoatnoknickers No, nobody has mentioned birth defects to me either. Google is my mortal enemy!

I also have a footling breech!

Thanks, everyone! You've all made me feel so much better.

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