Some birth injuries result from unavoidable complications during pregnancy, labor, or delivery, while others are caused by the negligence of hospitals, clinics, obstetricians, or other medical personnel assisting in the care of a pregnant woman and her unborn child. When a child’s birth injury is caused by malpractice, the child and the child’s family may be entitled to compensation through legal action.
Birth injury attorney Jeff Killino has extensive experience with cases involving birth injuries caused by medical negligence or malpractice. If you suspect that your child suffers from a birth injury caused by medical negligence during your pregnancy, labor, or delivery, contact attorney Killino at 877-412-8490 for a free evaluation of your case and additional information about your legal rights and options.
Negligently Diagnosed or Treated Pregnancy Complications
The negligence of obstetricians and other treating physicians in diagnosing and treating pregnancy complications is a frequent cause of childbirth injuries. Common examples include the following:
- Failure to timely diagnose and adequately manage gestational diabetes during a woman’s pregnancy can lead to serious birth injuries. The rise in a mother’s blood sugar and a fetus of above-average weight, for example, can both result in birth injuries that could have been prevented with proper management of the maternal condition.
- Untreated gestational diabetes can also lead to preeclampsia, a pregnancy complication marked by a rise in the mother’s blood pressure that, if left untreated, can result in serious injury or death to both mother and fetus.
- The failure to timely diagnose and handle nuchal cord (the wrapping of the umbilical cord around a fetus’s neck) during a woman’s pregnancy can also result in serious injury or death to the fetus.
- Placental abruption, the separation of the placenta from the uterus, is another pregnancy complication that can lead to serious injury or death of a fetus if not timely diagnosed and managed.
Negligence during Labor and Delivery
Birth injuries may also be caused by negligent care during labor or delivery.
Negligently Caused Birth Asphyxia
Any deprivation of oxygen, or birth asphyxia, to a child’s brain during childbirth can result in an infant’s mild to severe birth injury or death. These injuries can be caused by, among other things, a doctor’s negligence in diagnosing or managing a prolapsed or compressed umbilical cord, negligent administration of anesthesia during Caesarian section (C-Section), or negligence in monitoring maternal and fetal vital signs.
Negligent Administration of Medications
Brain injuries due to oxygen deprivation may also be caused by the negligent administration of medications during labor and delivery. The use of excessive amounts of epidural medications or the failure to adequately monitor the vital signs of mother and fetus after administration, for example, can lead to brain injuries from oxygen deprivation. Similar injuries may occur from a negligent administration of Pitocin to induce or advance labor.
Negligent Care of Newborn
In some cases, birth injuries are caused by the negligence of medical personnel immediately following an infant’s birth. The negligent failure to detect the need for resuscitation or the negligent performance of resuscitation of an infant in distress, for instance, can result in asphyxiation injuries such as cerebral palsy, other brain damage, or cognitive and physical disabilities. Oxygen deprivation and blood loss from premature umbilical cord clamping can also result in injuries such as CP or brain hemorrhaging.
Contact Us
If your child has sustained a birth injury due to medical malpractice during your pregnancy, labor, or delivery, birth injury lawyer Jeff Killino can help you obtain justice from the responsible parties. Contact attorney Killino at 877-412-8490 for experienced and compassionate assistance with your child’s birth injury case.
