Conduplicato corpore is a condition that occurs during birth if the fetus is quite small and the

pelvis The pelvis (plural pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of the trunk, between the abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also called bony pelvis, or pelvic skeleton). The ...

is large. Spontaneous delivery may occur despite persistence of the abnormal lie. In such cases, the fetus is compressed with the head forced against the abdomen. A portion of the thoracic wall below the shoulder thus becomes the most dependent part, appearing at the vulva. The

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

and thorax then pass through the pelvic cavity at the same time, and the fetus, which is doubled upon itself (Conduplicato Corpore), is expelled. Such a mechanism is obviously possible only in the case of very small infant and occasionally when the second preterm fetus in a twin pregnancy is born.

References

Health issues in pregnancy {{Womens-health-stub}