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Birth And Brain Injuries
Medical Malpractice is a frequent cause of traumatic injuries during birth. At The Skolnick Law Firm, LLC our team of lawyers and expert medical consultants pride themselves on helping families uncover whether medical errors were responsible for devastating injuries. Cerebral palsy and other birth injuries can occur during the delivery process, or by improper prenatal care. If a doctor or nurse fails to recognize fetal distress, or responds too slowly to indications of concern, your child could suffer a life long disability. The legal team at Skolnick Law, LLC are experienced in handling and understanding these complex medical matters.
Common Delivery Errors Include:
- Failure to monitor fetal strips
- Misread fetal strips
- Improper use of forceps or vacuum
- Failure to perform caesarean section
Was there malpractice?
Certainly there are instances where a child's condition is the result of genetics, such as a chromosomal disorder. Far too often, however, these life altering conditions are the result of malpractice. For example, significant injuries can occur when the doctor or nurse fails to read (or inaccurately reads) the slips monitoring the fetal condition. If the strips indicate fetal distress, then the doctor must act immediately, otherwise, the fetus could be deprived of its vital oxygen supply. As a result of this delay, the baby may sustain brain damage that could have been avoided. In other cases, the misuse of forceps or vacuum during delivery can cause traumatic brain injury. An infant’s skull is both soft and pliable, and if too much pressure is applied during birth, a direct trauma to the brain can occur.
Cerebral palsy, Erb’s Palsy, and Brachial Plexus Palsy are some of the common results of injuries sustained during birth. While physical or speech therapy can assist in enhancing a child’s development, the impact of cerebral palsy and other birth-trauma induced damage are typically permanent.
How the injury occurs
“Traumatic birth injuries” is a broad description used to describe both avoidable and unavoidable mechanical and anoxic trauma to the brain of an infant during labor and delivery.
Anoxic trauma involves diminished oxygen in the arterial blood supply despite the infant's otherwise (hyphen removed) normal ability to carry oxygen. Essential to the regulation and coordination of all body activity, the transmission of oxygen to the brain is vital to maintaining regular infant development. Diminished oxygen in the blood supply may be due to a reduced supply of oxygen (during respiration?), respiratory obstruction, or inadequate respiratory movements. This can result in such serious conditions as Cerebral Palsy.
Mechanical trauma involves some physical act (of harm?) to the body, usually the skull of an infant, which prevents the necessary transmission of oxygen to the brain.
If you would like to discuss your legal options, contact us online or call us at (216) 685-9991 to set up a FREE consultation.
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