An infant or the delivering mother can encounter birth injury during labor or delivery. This unexpected incident is devastating to a family and can result in lifelong physical and/or mental impairment. Birth injuries can also prove fatal. Birth injuries are often the result of negligence or error on the part medical staff. Parents-to-be must trust their medical team to do everything possible to ensure a safe delivery. When the hospital, medical team or doctor fails to act responsibly, parents have every right to file suit for medical malpractice.
If your baby is the victim of a birth injury, or if a loved one of yours suffered an injury during childbirth, please contact our office and speak with a member of the firm. The applicable statute of limitations is likely already running, so timing can be critically important to your case. Contact us today for a free, no obligation, confidential legal consultation.
Birth injury can be caused by a multitude of negligent behavior or error before or during delivery. Common causes include:
• Substandard or negligent prenatal care • Improper use of a vacuum extractor or forceps during delivery • Delayed or improper diagnosis of fetal distress due to negligent electronic fetal monitoring • Delayed delivery or cesarean section • Premature birth resulting from a urinary tract infection or other condition that could have been treated • Failure to identify macrosomia: a condition in which the baby’s head and shoulders are too large to pass through the birth canal • Hypoxia or Anoxia (lack of oxygen) • Other errors or acts of negligence by the obstetrical team or hospital
