As an experienced birth injury attorney, Jeffrey Killino understands that complications can arise during pregnancy as well as the birthing process. Those complications can include asphyxia, which may be due to a medical mistake. He and his outstanding legal team have the resources to handle multiple types of birth injuries and will work with you to hold the responsible parties accountable for their negligence.
Experienced Attorneys Who Know Birth Injuries
Learning that your newborn baby may suffer from a birth injury that could have been prevented, such as birth asphyxia, can be a nearly unbearable experience for you and your family. During pregnancy and delivery, you put your trust in professional medical personnel. When that trust is compromised, your baby is put at risk, and the results can be catastrophic. Attorney Killino’s experienced birth-injury attorneys have the knowledge, determination, and compassion to pursue justice on your behalf and obtain the compensation to which you are entitled if medical malpractice contributed to your child’s asphyxia or other birth injury. Contact Attorney Killino at 877-875-2927 for more information regarding your legal options.
Birth Asphyxia
Birth asphyxia is a common birth injury that results when an infant does not receive enough oxygen either before, during, or immediately following birth. Birth asphyxia can cause severe physical problems, including brain damage and conditions, such as cerebral palsy. Birth asphyxia can be caused by a mother’s health problems or poor medical care given during the birthing process.
Guidelines promulgated by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) list the symptoms of prenatal asphyxia that lead to acute neurological injury. Common indications of birth asphyxia include the following:
- Unstable, erratic, or falling fetal heart rate
- No movement of fetus
- Low maternal blood pressure
- Pressure on umbilical cord
- Placental problems
- Pale skin
- Difficulty breathing
Legal Liability for Birth Asphyxia Injuries
Asphyxia birth injuries, many of which may be severe and permanent, can be caused by the negligence of medical personnel during a woman’s pregnancy, or during and after the child’s birth. Many types of medical errors may result in a child’s asphyxia birth injuries.
Negligence during Labor and Delivery
A child’s asphyxia birth injuries may be caused by the negligence of medical professionals during the mother’s labor and delivery of the child.
· Failure to Monitor and Respond to Fetal Distress
If an obstetrician—who has been trained to look for warning signs of birth asphyxia—fails to properly monitor and respond to fetal distress during the labor or delivery stage, asphyxia and resultant brain damage may occur. This breach of the duty of care owed by a physician to a patient (which includes a duty to both the mother and her unborn child) may occur when a physician fails to recognize and respond to an erratic fetal heart rate or an indication that the mother’s oxygen level has been compromised. If the physician is determined to have breached the physician’s duty of care during the labor and delivery stage of a child’s birth and such lack of reasonable care is determined to have been a cause of the baby’s asphyxia birth injuries, the physician may be held liable in a medical malpractice action for the damages suffered by the baby as a result.
· Failure to Order a C-section When Indicated
An obstetrician’s failure to order a Caesarean-section (C–section) rather than a vaginal delivery when indicated may also result in a child’s asphyxia birth injury. If, for instance, the umbilical cord has become wrapped around the baby’s neck, a C-section may be necessary to avoid strangulation of the baby. Umbilical-cord complications may result in severe injuries or death if not immediately and appropriately managed.
Negligence during the Mother’s Pregnancy
An obstetrician’s or physician’s negligence during a woman’s pregnancy may also result in a child’s asphyxia birth injuries. Conditions that may develop during a woman’s pregnancy include placenta previa, pre-eclampsia, and eclampsia. If these conditions are not properly and timely diagnosed so that the indicated interventions may be planned for and instituted, the woman’s baby may sustain an asphyxia birth injury as a result.
In addition to the placental problem associated with placental previa, a pregnancy that goes past full term may also result in a placenta that delivers an inadequate amount of oxygen to the fetus. If the failure of a physician to recognize and properly handle any of these conditions or risk factors is determined to result from the physician’s negligence, the physician may be held liable for the child’s resulting asphyxia birth injuries in a medical malpractice action.
Contact Us
If your child has suffered from birth asphyxia, you may be entitled to compensation for the injuries your child has suffered as a result. Contact experienced birth injury attorney Jeffrey Killino at 877-875-2927, or fill out the email form below, to learn more about the actions you can take to obtain the compensation you deserve. One of our experienced birth-injury lawyers will contact you promptly and provide you with a cost-free evaluation of your case.
