Why Mom’s Age Does Not Automatically Explain Baby’s HIE Brain Injury
When a baby is diagnosed with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, many mothers hear the same explanation. Someone suggests her age played a role. That idea can sit heavily on a mother who is already grieving and trying to understand what happened to her child.
The truth is that we need to understand why mom’s age does not automatically explain baby’s HIE brain injury, and it starts with the medical facts.
Maternal age can be linked to a higher chance of certain pregnancy complications, but a higher chance is not a cause. Plenty of older mothers deliver healthy babies, and plenty of younger mothers face serious birth complications.
Looking Beyond the Age Label
HIE occurs when a baby’s brain does not get enough oxygen or blood flow. During labor and delivery, several things can cause this, including problems with the umbilical cord, the placenta, or contractions that come too often.
Some of these events are preventable when the care team recognizes warning signs on the fetal heart monitor and responds quickly. When they do not, the outcome can be devastating.
Blaming a mother’s age can quietly shift attention away from those questions. It places responsibility on her instead of on the timing and quality of the medical response.
Asking the Right Questions
Every family deserves an individual review of the medical records. A careful look can show when concerns first appeared, how the care team responded, and whether delays or missed signs affected the baby.
Mothers should never have to carry guilt that the evidence does not support. Remember why mom’s age does not automatically explain baby’s HIE brain injury, and ask what really happened during labor.
Useful questions include whether the fetal heart rate tracing showed distress, whether the team acted on it, and whether a timely cesarean delivery was considered. Answers to these questions come from records and expert review, not from assumptions about a mother’s age.
If your baby has been diagnosed with HIE, you are not to blame for what happened during birth. Let’s stop blaming mothers and start asking the right questions.
My information is below if you have any questions regarding your baby’s HIE brain injury at birth, or subsequent CP or cerebral palsy diagnosis. Remember, it does not cost you any money to speak to me initially regarding your baby’s story.
Marcus B. Boston, Esq.
9701 Apollo Dr. Suite 100
Largo, Maryland 20774
301-850-4832
1-833-4 BABY HELP
