BABY BIRTH INJURY LAWYERS AT LAW OFFICES OF DAVID A. SIMS, PLLC

Head Injury Is the Most Common Birth-Related Injury

Not surprisingly, injuries to your baby’s head is the most common birth-related injury. Understand, not all head injuries result in harm and many times they resolve without long-term consequences. However, there are times when those injuries have catastrophic results. Baby Birth Injury Lawyers at Law Offices of David A. Sims, PLLC are here to help you and your family understand the difference and to prosecute your family’s claims if someone is responsible.

Other Common Birth Injuries Include:

Ataxic Cerebral Palsy. People with ataxic CP have problems with balance and coordination and are generally unsteady when they walk. They might have a hard time with quick or sudden movements which require a lot of control, like writing. Often, they have a hard time controlling their hands or arms when they reach for something.

Brachial palsy. This occurs when the group of nerves that supplies the arms and hands (brachial plexus) is injured during labor and delivery. It’s most common when there is trouble delivering the baby’s shoulder, called shoulder dystocia. The baby loses the ability to flex and rotate the arm. If the injury caused bruising and swelling around the nerves, movement should return within a few months. Tearing of the nerve may cause permanent nerve damage. Special exercises are used to help maintain the arm’s range of motion while healing occurs.

Bruising or forceps marks. Some babies may show signs of bruising on the face or head simply because of the trauma of passing through the birth canal and contact with the mother’s pelvic bones and tissues. Forceps used with delivery can leave temporary marks or bruises on the baby’s face and head. Babies delivered by vacuum extraction may have some scalp bruising or a scalp cut (laceration).

Caput succedaneum. Caput is a significant swelling of the soft tissues of the baby’s scalp. This develops as the baby travels through the birth canal. Some babies have some bruising of the area. The swelling usually goes away in a few days without problems. Babies delivered by vacuum extraction are more likely to have this condition.

Cephalohematoma. This is an area of bleeding between the skull bone and its fibrous covering. It often appears several hours after birth as a raised lump on the baby’s head. Over time, the body reabsorbs the blood. Depending on the size, most cephalohematomas take 2 weeks to 3 months to disappear completely. If the area of bleeding is large, some babies may develop jaundice as the red blood cells break down.

Cerebral palsy. (CP) is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture. CP is the most common motor disability in childhood. Cerebral meaning affects the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles.

All people with CP have problems with body movement and with their posture. Many of them have related conditions such as intellectual disability; seizures; problems with vision, hearing, or speech; changes in the spine, like scoliosis; or joint problems, like contractures.

Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy. Is CP which includes athetoid, choreoathetoid, and dystonic cerebral palsies. People suffering from dyskinetic CP have problems controlling the movement of their hands, arms, feet, and legs, making it difficult to sit and walk. The movements are generally uncontrollable and may be slow and writhing or rapid and jerky. Sometimes the face and tongue are affected, and the child has a hard time sucking, swallowing, and talking. A person with dyskinetic CP has muscle tone that can change (varying from too tight to too loose) not only from day to day but even during a single day.

An epidural hematoma is bleeding between the outer layer (dura mater) of tissue covering the brain (meninges) and the skull. An epidural hematoma may be caused by a fracture of the bones of the skull. If the hematoma increases the pressure in the brain, the soft spots between skull bones (fontanelles) may bulge, sometimes resulting in apnea or seizures.

Intraparenchymal hemorrhage occurs in the brain tissue of your baby. Intraventricular hemorrhages and intraparenchymal hemorrhages usually occur in premature newborns and occur more typically as a result of an underdeveloped brain rather than a birth injury. Newborns who have large hemorrhages may have a poor prognosis, but those with small hemorrhages usually survive and generally do well over the long term.

Mixed Cerebral Palsy. Some people have symptoms of more than one type of CP, at the same time.

Spastic Cerebral Palsy. Spastic CP is the most common type of CP. Spastic CP affects about 80% of people with the condition. People with spastic CP have increased muscle tone. This means their muscles are stiff and, as a result, movements may be awkward. Spastic CP usually is described by what parts of the body are affected:

• Spastic diplegia/diparesis. Muscle stiffness is mainly in the legs, with the arms less affected or not affected at all. People with spastic diplegia might have difficulty walking because of tight hip and leg muscles, which cause their legs to pull together, turn inward, and cross at the knees.
• Spastic hemiplegia/hemiparesis. CP affects only one side of a person’s body; usually, the arm is more affected than the leg.
• Spastic quadriplegia/quadriparesis. The most severe form of CP is spastic quadriplegia. It affects all areas of the body, the four limbs, the trunk, and the face. People with spastic quadriparesis usually cannot walk and often have other developmental disabilities such as intellectual disability; seizures; or problems with vision, hearing, and speech.

Facial paralysis. During labor or birth, pressure on a baby’s face may injure the facial nerve. This may also occur when forceps are used for delivery. The injury is often seen when the baby cries. There is no movement on the side of the face with the injury and the eye can’t be closed. If the nerve was only bruised, the paralysis usually improves in a few weeks. If the nerve was torn, surgery may be needed.

Fractures. Fracture of the clavicle or collarbone is the most common fracture during labor and delivery. The clavicle may break when there is trouble delivering the baby’s shoulder or during a breech delivery. A baby with a fractured clavicle rarely moves the arm on the side of the break. However, healing occurs quickly, but as new bone forms, a firm lump on the clavicle often develops in the first 10 days.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage is bleeding below the innermost of the membranes that cover the brain. This hemorrhage is the most common type in newborns, usually occurring in full-term newborns. Newborns with a subarachnoid hemorrhage may have apnea (periods when they stop breathing), seizures, or lethargy, but most get better.

Subconjunctival hemorrhage. This is the breakage of small blood vessels in the eyes of a baby. One or both of the eyes may have a bright red band in the white part of the eye. This is very common and doesn’t cause eye damage. The redness is usually absorbed in a week to 10 days.

Subdural hemorrhage is bleeding between the outer and the inner layers of the brain covering. It is less common now, because of improved childbirth techniques. A subdural hemorrhage can put increased pressure on the surface of the brain. Newborns with a subdural hemorrhage may develop problems such as seizures and may have those seizures and other problems the rest of their lives.

A subgaleal hemorrhage is bleeding directly under the scalp but above the periosteum covering the skull bones. A subgaleal hemorrhage can cause severe blood loss and shock, sometimes resulting in the need for a transfusion. A subgaleal hemorrhage may result from the use of forceps or a vacuum extractor, but not always.

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: HIE is a type of brain injury that occurs when the baby’s brain doesn’t receive enough oxygen or blood flow for a period of time during labor or delivery. Hypoxic means not enough oxygen. Ischemic means not enough blood flow. Encephalopathy means brain disorder or injury.

HIE CAN CAUSE PERMANENT DAMAGE TO THE BABY DURING LABOR AND DELIVERY INCLUDING:

• Brain damage
• Seizures
• Mental disabilities
• Cerebral palsy
• Motor deficits
• Need for full-time attendant care with catastrophic costs

Fetal Heart Monitoring: FHM is the way doctors and nurses check the condition of your baby during labor and delivery. They do it by monitoring your baby’s heart rate with special equipment. Fetal heart monitoring is important to you and your unborn baby because it lets your doctor and nurses know if your baby is in trouble.

Fetal heart rate monitoring may help detect changes in the normal heart rate pattern during labor. If certain changes are detected, steps can be taken to help treat the underlying problem. A normal fetal heart rate can reassure both you and your doctor that it is safe to continue labor if no other problems are present. Interpreting the heart rate patterns is important. It takes specific training and experience to interpret these monitoring strips. If the proper interpretation is not made, it may result in catastrophic injuries to your baby.

The fetal heart rate undergoes constant and minute changes in response to the fetal environment and stimuli that may be occurring. Fetal heart rate patterns are classified as reassuring, non-reassuring or ominous. Non-reassuring patterns such as fetal tachycardia, bradycardia and late decelerations with good short-term variability require intervention to rule out fetal acidosis. Ominous heart rate patterns require emergency intrauterine fetal resuscitation and immediate delivery. Differentiating between a reassuring and non-reassuring fetal heart rate pattern is the essence of accurate interpretation, which is essential to guide appropriate treatment decisions.

When FHM suggests that your baby is in trouble, your doctor and nurses must take steps to address the situation, including expediting delivery. When steps are not timely taken to address abnormal heart rates or rhythms, babies are often injured as a result.

Bradycardia: Bradycardia is an unhealthy, slow heart rate and is most often detected with fetal heart monitoring. It may cause your baby to suffer apnea. Bradycardia can result in severe injury to your baby if the condition is not addressed by your doctor and the nurses providing care to you and your unborn baby.

Tachycardia: Tachycardia is an unhealthy, fast heart rate is most often detected with fetal heart monitoring. It may cause your baby to suffer injury by causing undue stress on the baby’s heart if the condition is not addressed by your doctor and the nurses providing care and treatment to you and your unborn baby.

Sepsis: Some babies are born with a dangerous infection of the bloodstream. Certain lab tests, cultures, and other diagnostic tools, like X-rays can help diagnose it. Tests for sepsis may be recommended if your baby has symptoms like a fever, high or low blood sugar levels, breathing problems or low blood pressure.

Placental abruption: Placental abruption occurs when the placenta separates from the uterus before birth. It deprives the baby of oxygen and nutrients and cause heavy bleeding in the mother. In some cases, early delivery is needed, but sometimes severe injuries occur to the fetus resulting in catastrophic injuries.

Perinatal asphyxia: Perinatal asphyxia is a decrease in blood flow to the baby’s oxygen in the baby’s blood before, during, or just after delivery. Common causes include placental abruption, obstruction of umbilical cord blood flow, abnormal development of the fetus, and severe infection in the fetus.

You just gave birth to a baby. Suddenly, your doctor and the nurses are working feverishly on your baby because of something that happened either during labor or delivery. The Discovery of a birth injury is not always easy. You may have observed something is not right with your baby or young child. Your baby may not be acting like other babies; your baby may have muscle tone that is loose or floppy; your baby may exhibit a lack of coordination; your baby may exhibit delays in early childhood development.

If you believe that your child is the victim of a birth injury, it is important to speak with an experienced physician who can properly diagnose the child and provide interventions and treatment to help your child.

What is a birth injury?

Sometimes during the birthing process, the baby may suffer a physical injury that is simply the result of being born. This is sometimes called birth trauma or birth injury.

What causes birth injury?

A difficult birth or injury to the baby can occur because of the baby’s size or the position of the baby during labor and delivery. Conditions that may be linked to a difficult birth include:

• Large babies. Birthweight over about 8 pounds, 13 ounces (4,000 grams).
• Babies born before 37 weeks (premature babies have more fragile bodies and may be more easily injured).
• Cephalopelvic disproportion. The size and shape of the mother’s pelvis is not adequate for the baby to be born vaginally.
• Difficult labor or childbirth.
• Prolonged labor
• Abnormal birthing presentation. An example of this is a buttocks first (breech) delivery. Toward the end of pregnancy, the fetus moves into position for delivery. Normally, the position of a fetus is facing rearward (toward the woman’s back) with the face and body angled to one side and the neck flexed, and presentation is headfirst. An abnormal position is facing forward, and abnormal presentations include face, brow, breech, and shoulder.
• Maternal obesity

Not all birth injuries are obvious. We have developed a shortlist of things that you need to be aware of in determining if your baby suffered an injury at birth. Please understand that this list is not exhaustive. We are simply providing you with common signs and diagnoses that may indicate your child has suffered an injury at birth.

• Cerebral palsy
• Hypoxic-ischemic injury (HIE)
• Neonatal encephalopathy
• Seizures
• Coma
• Poor coordination—Frequent Falls
• Excessive molding of the head
• Extreme lethargy
• Skin discoloration
• Mental disability

Not all children who suffer from mental retardation have suffered an injury at birth. These diagnoses are ones that are generally associated with birth injuries:

• Brain injury during birth
• IUGR (intrauterine growth retardation)
• Preeclampsia or high blood pressure during pregnancy
• Pregnancy complications not properly diagnosed or addressed
• Excessive force used during a delivery

Every parent goes into labor and delivery expecting things to go perfectly smooth and a healthy baby to be born as a result. While complications may happen, we trust our doctors, hospitals and nurses to know how to handle any situation to keep mother and baby safe. Most commonly, brain damage is caused by a lack of oxygen to the baby’s brain or birth asphyxia. When a preventable medical mistake happens, the lives of families are permanently affected. If it happened to you or your baby, please contact us. The lawyers you choose make a difference. You need the team at Brain Injured Baby to prosecute your case!

Many parents whose infant or newborn suffered a brain injury, brain stem injury, or other childbirth injuries are left struggling to understand what happened. Even when the doctor or hospital was at fault for failing to prevent the brain injury, patients will only be left with confusion and a misleading array of medical terms or diagnoses, with a focus entirely on the injury complications and not the cause of the injury. Most often, you will receive no explanation, no apology, no “I’m sorry”, and certainly no help, just a stack of medical bills with threatening letters when you cannot pay them. It is for that reason you need to call us at Brain Injured Baby. You need a birth injury lawyer.

If professional standards are ignored, both mother and baby may suffer life-altering consequences, which makes hiring a birth injury lawyer most important. You need a trained, experienced and educated lawyer who understands the medicine to file a claim to help cover the costs of treatments that will allow your child to have the best possible quality of life. You need us at Brain Injured Baby!

The statute of limitations for filing a birth injury claim is different depending on the state where the injury occurred. One thing that is certain, if you file a claim after this timeframe has passed, you won’t be able to get compensation. If you have questions about your state, please contact us right away!

No Fee Guarantee

We at Brain Injured Baby guarantee that you owe us nothing unless we get money for your baby’s injuries and damages. Our consultations are also FREE! We will never ask you for a penny to prosecute your case. We will be by your side every step of the way!

HIE and other birth injury cases are often very difficult and may take years to develop and get to trial. They require a lot of work and resources that many lawyers and law firms simply do not have. Doctors, nurses, and hospitals have unlimited resources because they have insurance to cover their costs and legal fees, when families do not. Thus, you need an experienced team with the resources to prosecute your family’s claim for damages.

We are dedicated to pursuing your family’s claim against some of the largest insurance companies in the world. In order to do that, we have the resources to pursue these claims so your family is not sold out for pennies when the case may be worth tens of millions. Protecting the rights of brain-injured children is our focus and our passion!