{"id":47104,"date":"2017-07-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-07-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/skolnicklaw.com\/blog\/2017\/07\/can-malpractice-lead-to-incontinence-after-childbirth\/"},"modified":"2025-01-27T11:38:29","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T16:38:29","slug":"can-malpractice-lead-to-incontinence-after-childbirth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skolnicklaw.com\/can-malpractice-lead-to-incontinence-after-childbirth\/","title":{"rendered":"Can malpractice lead to incontinence after childbirth?"},"content":{"rendered":"
Pregnancy and childbirth are hard on a woman\u2019s body \u2014 but a doctor\u2019s mistake can make that hardship worse by leaving her incontinent long after her labor and delivery are over.<\/p>\n
One of the questions medical professionals have tried to answer over the years is what causes some women to develop incontinence after childbirth and not others, despite seemingly similar circumstances. They\u2019ve also tried to determine if anything can be done to minimize the risks that those women face. Research has finally provided some fairly clear answers:<\/p>\n
1. While mild incontinence is common during pregnancy, only about 5 percent of women develop long-term problems with incontinence and still have symptoms a year after delivery. Doctors need to do more to identify those women with higher risk factors than others.<\/p>\n
2. An overly-long labor can increase the risk of damage to the mother\u2019s pelvic floor muscles, which can lead to long-term incontinence. This suggests that doctors should educate mothers-to-be on the risks of a long labor and agree, in advance, just how long labor should continue before a cesarean section is considered.<\/p>\n
3. Women who have certain high-risk factors for long-term incontinence and pelvic floor damage can be identified through a careful screening process. They should be given enough information about the risks of long-term incontinence, given their medical condition, to make an informed decision about whether or not to have an elective cesarean delivery.<\/p>\n