Crackling bones-what are they screening newborn for?

[JaneSmith1010]

My sister just had a baby--VERY rough birth, 48 hours of irregular labor, and they pried the baby out forcefully with forceps. The doctor said she heard the babies bones crackling and now they need to screen the baby for ? disorder. I can't figure out without talking to the doc what bone disorder they could mean besides osteogenisis imperfecta and I don't think that manifests in newborns very often. Any idea what it is so I can look it up?

[happydoulamama]

Sigh. I *think* they might mean a cracked collarbone (but that would have nothing to do with a disorder). It happens sometimes naturally, but most of the time it happens when babies are pulled hard out of the womb. It happened to my first born as a result of a vacuum.

It makes me sad. I remember the whole room heard this, "crack" and I just thought my whole perineum must have busted into two. But, no, it was "just" my baby's collar bone as the nurse put it! Poor baby. She didn't seem in distress and the xray showed a clean break. There was no treatment for it, but I was so nervous to nurse on that side.

[onelilguysmommy]

the first thing i thought of was cerebral palsy then cracked..anything. to the baby especially, and your sis and you!

[BetsyS]

Could they have said that they felt a hip "click"? When a newborn is first examined, part of the exam is to feel their hips to make sure that they are not slipping out of joint. You can feel a "click" from the outside that alerts you that something MIGHT be wrong. An ultrasound usually is the next step, to confirm if the hips are formed normally or not.

If I remember correctly, depending on the severity, the treatment ranges from double diapering for a while all the way to surgery.

[maxmama]

Originally Posted by happydoulamama

Sigh. I *think* they might mean a cracked collarbone (but that would have nothing to do with a disorder). It happens sometimes naturally, but most of the time it happens when babies are pulled hard out of the womb. It happened to my first born as a result of a vacuum.

It makes me sad. I remember the whole room heard this, "crack" and I just thought my whole perineum must have busted into two. But, no, it was "just" my baby's collar bone as the nurse put it! Poor baby. She didn't seem in distress and the xray showed a clean break. There was no treatment for it, but I was so nervous to nurse on that side.

No, there's no "screening" for a fractured clavicle. It's pretty damn obvious.

To the OP: Yes, OI does present in newborns sometimes.