Before Your Baby Is Born

If you're expecting a baby, you're probably learning all you can about how to make your pregnancy, labor, and delivery go smoothly and leave you and your baby in good health. But it's also important to understand that certain health problems and complications can't be prevented, no matter how smoothly the pregnancy goes.
There's no way to be completely prepared for complications during delivery or for the discovery that your child has a birth defect or medical problem. But understanding common newborn health problems and how they're treated might reduce anxiety about the potential that something might go wrong.

Before Your Baby Is Born

With prenatal tests, doctors often can detect certain birth defects, such as spina bifida, Down syndrome, congenital heart disease, exposed bowel, or cleft lip, before the baby is born.
Other birth defects can't be discovered until after the baby is born. Delivery complications such as meconium aspiration (when a newborn inhales a mixture of meconium — the baby's first feces, ordinarily passed after birth — and amniotic fluid during labor and delivery) can occur.
If a birth defect is discovered prenatally, your doctor may discuss what will happen in the time right after you deliver the baby. You and your doctor should discuss which hospital is best prepared to deal care for your baby so that you can plan to deliver there.

You might want to ask if you can tour the intensive or special care unit at the hospital to become familiar with it and meet the team of health care professionals who may care your baby. This team may include neonatologists, pediatric anesthesiologists, pediatric surgeons, neonatal nurses, nurse practitioners, and doctors in training (like fellows and residents).