Our newborn cases with brachial plexus palsy and its prognosis relation with clavicle fracture: A single-center retrospective study

Abstract

Aim: The aim of the study was to present clinical and demographic characteristics of the newborns born in our hospital via normal vaginal delivery and diagnosed with obstetric brachial plexus palsy (OBPP). Material and Methods: Our study was planned as a retrospective single-center study. In our study, newborns born with normal vaginal route were included in Malatya Training and Research Hospital between October 1, 2015 and March 15, 2018. In this period, a total of 5288 newborns were born and 68 of these cases had the pathology of OBPP. Results: Of 68 patients with OBPP, 37 were girls, 31 were boys and mean birth weight was 3,888 gr. The right arm of 38 cases and the left arm of 31 cases were found to develop OBPP. According to the Narakas classification, 39 cases of them (57.3%) were stage I, 21 (30.8%) were stage II, 6 (8.8%) were stage IIU, and 2 of the cases (2.9%) were evaluated as stage IV. Discussion: In our study, the mean frequency of OBPP was close to the world average. Even, it was lower comparing to some European countries. However, the frequency of clavicular fracture was higher comparing to the literature. This gave the impression that the clavicle fracture could be considered as a protecting factor for the development of OBPP. Conclusion: Although OBPP is a common congenital complication in newborns, its frequency in Turkey is parallel to the world average. The main reasons for this OBPP outcome can be due to increasing the number of highly skilled obstetricians in this field and women are currently performing most of the deliveries in a hospital setting even they are not under follow-up. In addition, the protective effect of clavicle fracture on OBPP was also observed in our study.