Patient's question:
My child was mildly asphyxiated at birth. After waking up, he cried a few times and then went back to sleep. Since the doctor didn't say anything at the time, I didn't pay much attention. Now the child is four and a half months old, and his development is completely normal. Did the child not cry during the asphyxia?Doctor's answer:
The fetus inside the mother is oxygenated through the placenta. Once born, this connection is severed. The child will rely on its own lungs to breathe. The first cry is a signal that the lungs have opened. Crying and breathing are closely related from the very beginning. A strong cry is a deep breath. If we are not naturally born with this first cry, it would be problematic. Not crying after birth can lead to many diseases and sequelae. Generally, it can be stimulated in other ways to make the child cry and establish lung breathing function.