Birth injuries or fetal death may occur as a result of medical negligence during any stage of a woman’s pregnancy. Though most babies are delivered in good health after enduring little more than the natural traumas of birth, a great many children are born with birth injuries that could have been prevented with proper medical care. Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and other asphyxiation injuries, cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy and other brachial plexus palsy injuries, and umbilical cord strangulation are among the many serious birth injuries that may be sustained.
Many birth injuries are caused by medical malpractice during women’s pregnancies and/or the labor and delivery stages of their children’s births. Child and birth injury attorney Jeffrey Killino has extensive experience and expertise with all types of birth injury cases and is known across the country for his aggressive pursuit of justice on behalf of children who have sustained such injuries through medical negligence or malpractice. If you lost a child or your child was born with an injury of any kind due to medical negligence during your pregnancy, labor, and/or delivery, you may be entitled to compensation through legal action. Contact child and birth injury lawyer Jeffrey Killino at 877-875-2927 for a free evaluation of your case and additional information about your legal options.
Legal Liability for Birth Injuries Caused by Medical Malpractice
Birth injuries or fetal death may be caused by medical mistakes made during a woman’s pregnancy or during the labor and delivery stages of her child’s birth.
Negligence during a Woman’s Pregnancy
Birth injuries and fetal deaths may occur when a pregnant woman’s obstetrician or other treating physician and/or medical personnel fail to watch for, identify, monitor, and/or manage certain conditions during the woman’s pregnancy. An obstetrician’s or other treating physician’s failure to monitor and/or manage a pregnant patient’s high blood pressure, for instance, may result in serious injury or death to the woman’s developing fetus if her high blood pressure leads to pre-eclampsia and the condition is not timely and appropriately managed. A fetus’s serious injury or death may also result from a physician’s negligent failure to timely diagnose and/or appropriately and timely manage complications such as nuchal cord or placental abruption.
A physician’s failure to monitor and manage a woman’s weight or diabetes during pregnancy may result in a macrosomic fetus (a fetus over a certain weight) that is too large to fit through the mother’s birth canal without difficulty. If a macrosomic baby is delivered vaginally, the baby’s shoulder can become caught on the mother’s pelvis as the baby moves through the birth canal (known as shoulder dystocia), a complication that often results in Erb’s palsy or other brachial plexus palsy birth injuries to the child. In such a case, if the negligence of medical personnel during the mother’s pregnancy is found to have been a cause of the baby’s shoulder dystocia and resultant Erb’s or other brachial plexus palsy injury, the responsible medical personnel may be found liable for the damages suffered by the child as a result. Similarly, a physician’s failure to detect and appropriately manage other conditions in a pregnant patient, such as meningitis or placental problems, may result in a child’s cerebral palsy (CP) birth injury, for which the physician may be held responsible.
Negligence during Labor or Delivery
Birth injuries are also frequently caused by medical negligence during the labor and delivery stages of children’s births. Common injuries that may be caused by medical negligence during these stages include HIE, CP, paralysis, and organ damage. An obstetrician’s failure to detect nuchal cord prolapse or compression during labor or delivery, for example, may lead to a child’s fatal or non-fatal asphyxia injury caused by oxygen deprivation. The negligent failure to diagnose and manage a woman’s placental abruption during these stages may also result in a child’s fatal or non-fatal asphyxiation injury.
Organ damage and/or paralysis or fetal death may occur if medical personnel assisting in a child’s birth negligently employ forceps or other delivery assistance devices during a difficult delivery. In addition to medical negligence during a woman’s pregnancy that leads to the development of a macrosomic fetus, negligence during labor and delivery may also cause a child’s Erb’s palsy or other brachial plexus palsy injury. This may occur if, for example, personnel assisting in a difficult delivery negligently pull on or twist a baby’s neck or head in an attempt to guide the baby through the birth canal. In addition, the failure to timely order and appropriately perform a Caesarian section (C-section) to deliver a macrosomic fetus (or other fetus for which a C-section is indicated) may be found causal of injuries sustained as a result of an ill-advised vaginal delivery.
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Many birth injuries and fetal deaths are caused by preventable medical error and negligence. Child and birth injury attorney Jeffrey Killino is recognized nationwide for his dedication and tenacity in fighting for the rights of children who have been injured in this manner. If your child has sustained a fatal or non-fatal birth injury due to medical negligence during your pregnancy, labor, or delivery, attorney Killino can help you obtain justice from those responsible for your child’s suffering. Contact attorney Killino at 877-875-2927 for experienced and aggressive representation.
