Was Your Baby Injured by an Ill-advised Vaginal Delivery or Delayed or Improperly Performed C-Section?

A baby can be injured at birth due to an obstetrician’s failure to order a Caesarian section (C-Section) delivery when a vaginal delivery posed certain risks to the fetus. Babies may also be injured when an indicated C-section is delayed or performed improperly. When a baby is injured or dies as a result of any of these instances of medical negligence, the obstetrician, hospital, and other medical practitioners involved may be found liable for the baby’s injury or death in a medical malpractice or wrongful death action.

Birth-injury attorney Jeffrey Killino has extensive experience with all types of birth injury cases, including those arising from birth injuries or deaths caused by medical malpractice related to C-section deliveries. If your child died or sustained a C-section-related birth injury, attorney Killino and his team of birth-injury lawyers can help you obtain the justice you deserve from all those responsible for your child’s birth injury or death.

Injuries or Deaths Caused by Failure to Order a C-section Delivery

birth injuryC-section delivery may be required in any situation in which a vaginal delivery is impossible or dangerous to a mother or her fetus. An obstetrician’s failure to order a C-section when indicated can result in the physician’s liability for resulting birth injury or death.

A large-sized fetus (fetal macrosomia) or excessive maternal weight gain or diabetes, for example, may indicate the need for a C-section to prevent certain birth injuries that may be sustained during a vaginal delivery. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), C-section deliveries to avoid birth trauma caused by vaginal delivery may be advisable when a mother has gained an excessive amount of weight or when a fetus’s weight is estimated to be at least 5,000 grams (approximately 11 pounds) in a non-diabetic mother or 4,500 grams (approximately 10 pounds) in a diabetic mother. Brachial plexus palsy, which often results from an obstetrician’s employment of excessive force in bringing a large fetus through the birth canal, is one of the most common injuries caused by vaginal delivery under these circumstances. This injury can be prevented with a C-section rather than vaginal delivery, so that an obstetrician’s failure to order a C-section can lead to the obstetrician’s liability for a baby’s resulting brachial plexus palsy injury.

A baby may also sustain birth injuries as a result of an ill-advised vaginal delivery when the mother is infected with genital herpes, HIV, or another serious infection that could be transferred to her baby during a vaginal birth. A doctor’s failure to diagnose such an infection in the mother and/or to order a C-section to prevent the transfer of the infection to her baby may result in the doctor’s liability for injury sustained by the baby as a result of contracting the infection.

A C-section delivery may also be indicated when a fetus is in a breech position, as vaginal delivery of a breech presentation fetus can cause serious injury or death to a fetus that can be prevented with a C-section delivery. An obstetrician’s failure to order a C-section when a breech presentation is detected may result in a fetus’s asphyxiation injury or death during vaginal delivery from nuchal cord or umbilical-cord prolapse, for example, and lead to the physician’s liability for such injury or death.

Injuries or Deaths Caused by Delayed C-section Deliveries

Certain labor and delivery complications may result in a baby’s birth injury or death if a C-section is not timely ordered and performed. Thus, either the late ordering of an indicated C-section or the delayed performance of an indicated and ordered C-section can result in an obstetrician’s liability for a baby’s resulting birth injury or death.

Delayed C-sections can result in asphyxia injuries to a baby, such as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) or cerebral palsy (CP), when a fetus has been suffering a deprivation of oxygen due to nuchal cord, umbilical-cord prolapse, placental abruption, or other conditions in the mother. A physician’s failure to detect these complications in time to order a C-section that will prevent a fetus’s consequent injury or death may result in the physician’s liability in a medical malpractice action.

An obstetrician’s ordering or performance of a C-section may also be considered untimely if performed too early. The performance of a C-section early in a pregnancy may result in birth injury due to a fetus’s insufficient lung, heart, or other organ development, for instance, and may lead to an obstetrician’s liability for those injuries if the obstetrician’s decision to perform an early C-section did not meet the required standard of care under the circumstances.

Medical Malpractice during a Baby’s C-section Delivery

Even a timely ordered and performed C-section delivery can result in birth injury or death to a baby if the surgery itself is performed in a negligent manner. The negligence of obstetricians, anesthesiologists, hospitals, and assisting medical personnel can all contribute to a baby’s C-section birth injury or death.

A surgeon who is performing a C-section may negligently cause a baby’s injury or death in a number of ways. The failure to timely and appropriately recognize and react to signs of fetal distress during the procedure, for example, can result in serious injury or death of a baby. Negligently made incisions that cut a baby’s face or lacerate organs may result in scarring, severe organ damage, or death. An anesthesiologist’s administration of an improper dose of medication or the wrong medication during a C-section procedure may also cause a baby’s birth injury or death.

Obtain Expert Assistance from Birth-Injury Attorney Jeffrey Killino

Birth-injury attorney Jeffrey Killino is dedicated to achieving justice for children who suffer from birth injuries caused by medical malpractice. If your child sustained a C-section or other birth injury and you suspect that the injury was due to medical malpractice, attorney Killino and his nationally-recognized team of birth-injury lawyers will help you fight for the compensation to which you are entitled.