Birth Injury Claims
A serious birth injury can leave a child
with a disability or medical condition that will last for life
and require extensive medical care for years to come. If your
child suffers from a birth injury, how do you ensure that you
receive all the assistance and financial compensation that you
need? It is important to get the best advice possible, from a
specialist clinical negligence solicitor.
Erb’s
Palsy/Brachial Plexus Injury
Erb's Palsy is a condition caused by
injury to the Brachial Plexus (group of nerves extending through
the neck, armpit region and arm) often resulting in partial or
total paralysis of the face, arm or hand.
The most common cause for Erb's Palsy is
dystocia, an abnormal or very difficult childbirth. If the
infant's head and shoulders are twisted, undue stress can be
placed on the Brachial Plexus, stretching or damaging these
nerves and therefore causing paralysis. In some cases, these
nerves may repair themselves, but in many cases they require
extensive physical therapy or even surgery.
Medical negligence can result from:
-
A failure to recognise a baby that
is too large to pass through the birth canal
-
A failure to turn a baby and
position them properly for vaginal delivery
-
An improperly estimated due date,
leading to a baby that is very large
-
A failure to perform caesarean
section when necessary
-
Negligence in manoeuvring an
impacted shoulder during childbirth
Pre-eclampsia
Caused by a defect in the placenta, Pre-
eclampsia is the most common serious complication of pregnancy.
Pre-eclampsia is symptomless in the early stages and is
detectable only by regular antenatal checks on the mother's
blood pressure and urine.
Risk factors include:
-
First-time mothers
-
Over-40s
-
Those with a BMI over 35
-
Women with a family history of pre-eclampsia
-
Where it is ten years or more since
a last baby
-
Those suffering from high blood
pressure, diabetes or kidney disease
-
Those carrying more than one baby
-
Those who have had it before
If your healthcare professional
negligently fails to diagnose or treat your pre-eclampsia and
this causes an injury to you or your baby you may be able to
make a birth injury claim for compensation.
Delivery
Mistakes
A medical practitioner is under a duty
to provide a reasonable standard of treatment and care. During
the treatment of a pregnant woman, during childbirth and after
childbirth, this is absolutely crucial to an infant's health. In
some cases, delivery mistakes may lead to Cerebral Palsy.
If your child is showing symptoms of
Cerebral Palsy or has been diagnosed with one of these serious
neurological disorders, it is possible that a mistake during
labour or delivery led to brain damage. Cerebral Palsy is a
permanent disorder for which there is no cure. Treatment to
improve symptoms is possible if you seek medical attention
immediately.
To bring a claim for medical negligence,
it must first be shown that mistakes were made, which in law,
amount to medical negligence. Typically mistakes during the
birth process will involve Midwives or Doctors failing to take
proper account of evidence of a baby's distress whilst still in
its mother's womb or in the birth canal.
Medical Negligence can result from:
-
Failing to monitor the mother or
child properly
-
Failing to take account of warning
signs such as a falling or unhealthy heartbeat, the presence
of meconium and disproportionate pain
-
Failing to deliver when it was
called for either naturally, assisted (by forceps or
ventouse for example) or by caesarean section
-
Inappropriate use of forceps,
causing a haemorrhage due to excessive force
If it is likely that mistakes were made,
it then has to be shown that those mistakes probably caused the
birth injury. To establish this, a medical negligence solicitor
will look for the following:
First, signs of a baby's distress during
the delivery and at birth:
These can include indications such as:
-
Abnormal or dipping heart beat on
the CTG monitor
-
Low APGAR scores at birth
-
Poor blood analysis results
-
Poor colour at birth
-
Poor heartbeat
-
A delay in natural breathing
-
Admission to SCBU
-
Convulsions in the first day or days
after birth
-
Discharge from hospital will almost
certainly be delayed
Secondly, for a birth injury claim it
has to be shown that the child has a pattern of injury that is
associated with a lack of oxygen or oxygenated blood supply
whilst still in the womb or birth canal.
Thirdly, we will look for evidence of
other organ damage such as damage to the kidneys or heart. These
organs are also vulnerable to injury resulting from a
deprivation of oxygen.
Developmental
Dysplasia of the Hip (DDH)
Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH)
occurs in a variety of conditions in which the ball and socket
of the hip do not develop properly resulting in surgery in later
life.
Medical negligence can occur when:
-
Appropriate tests following birth or
during early development are not undertaken or are carried
out incorrectly
-
Appropriate treatment is not
provided
-
Findings are not reported
-
Potential problems are not diagnosed
If the condition is missed by your
healthcare professionals and it is not diagnosed before your
baby starts to walk, the prognosis can be poor. More complicated
surgery may be required and there are risks of later
complications in early adolescence and later.
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