1-833-4 BABY HELP | 833-422-2943 info@bostonlawllc.com
The fetal heart monitor can help doctors determine if the baby is in distress

The fetal heart monitor can help doctors determine if the baby is in distress

A Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer can assist you and your family in a variety of ways to get the answers that you deserve surrounding your child suffering an injury at birth. So many questions circulate through the minds of parents regarding their baby’s health. Questions like the following:

  • Am I greedy as a mom if I sue for my baby?
  • How can a brain injury happen to a baby?
  • Should the doctor have done an emergency C-section?
  • Were the nurses doing their jobs while I was in labor?

These questions can flow through the minds of parents who have recently experienced a delivery and their baby is not meeting certain developmental milestones. A brain injury at birth is a common reason why a child has been unable to reach those milestones.

 

CEREBRAL PALSY IS THE MOST COMMON MOTOR DISABILITY IN CHILDHOOD

 

According to inf from the Centers for Control and Prevention (CDC), cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common motor disability for children. CP is traumatic due to the baby’s inability to move. The term cerebral palsy, when dissected, can be seen as brain (cerebral) and muscle weakness (palsy).

A Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer will assess that one of the main causes for a CP diagnosis is due to the baby not receiving enough oxygen during the delivery process. This term is called hypoxia and is tied to Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE) describing a lack of oxygen and a brain injury.

In a Maryland birth brain injury, determining whether the baby was in distress during the delivery is one of the main areas to investigate. If present, a few signs will be available for the doctors and nurses to detect that the baby is in distress, with the first sign being the presence of heavy meconium in the amniotic fluid. Meconium is the baby’s stool and doctors must remain alert if it is detected due to the possibility of fetal distress.

 

A young boy with a cerebral palsy diagnosis

A young boy with a cerebral palsy diagnosis

The second sign of possible fetal distress is associated with the fetal heart monitor readings, which measure and keep track of the baby’s heart rate. This allows the doctors and nurses to see if the baby is tolerating a vaginal delivery. On average, a baby’s heart rate is around 110-bpm-160 bpm. If the heart rate is too high (over 165 bpm) for an extended period of time, the baby may be dealing with tachycardia. On the other hand, if the heart rate is too low (around 100 bpm and below) for an extended period during a vaginal delivery, then the baby may be dealing with bradycardia. Both conditions can provide reason that the baby may be in distress and is dealing with a possible lack of oxygen. 

Your Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer will review and assess your baby’s medical records for signs of fetal distress, and other issues.

 

WAS YOUR BABY’S ARM OR HAND INJURED DURING BIRTH?

 

Another serious injury that a baby can suffer at birth is an injury to the baby’s arm or hand. Injuries of this magnitude can at times be difficult to make out right away due to a baby’s inability to talk after birth to tell us where and what hurts. If you have conducted independent research on your baby’s arm or hand injury, you may have come across the following medical conditions:

  • Brachial plexus palsy
  • Erb’s palsy or Erb’s palsy or Erb–Duchenne palsy
  • Klumpke’s palsy or Dejerine-Klumpke palsy

These medical conditions are associated with injuries to nerves found in the areas of the neck/shoulder. Depending on how severe the injury is to the nerve, the arm and or hand injury can be temporary or permanent.

 

DID YOUR BABY GET STUCK DURING A VAGINAL DELIVERY?

 

Your Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer is going to review your baby’s medical records to detect if shoulder dystocia was present during the birthing process if your baby is unable to use their arm or hand. Shoulder dystocia occurs when the baby gets trapped behind the mother’s pelvis during childbirth. When this occurs, an emergency scenario is created in the emergency room because the doctors must immediately free the baby. Not only can a serious injury be the outcome for the baby, if he or she is not freed in a timely manner, death can occur.

Doctors are taught specific maneuvers to free the child, and the some are listed below:

A nurse monitoring a newborn baby

A nurse monitoring a newborn baby

  • The McRobert’s maneuver
  • Rubin I
  • Rubin II
  • Woods’ screw maneuver

 

Problems can arise when doctors begin to panic which leads to the maneuvers being performed in an incorrect manner. For example, doctors can apply excessive force to the baby, which then damages the brachial plexus nerves. This can lead to an injury to the baby’s arm or hand, with the injury being permanent in some cases. 

A Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer will analyze the level of force used to free the baby and pre-delivery signs of an increased chance of a shoulder dystocia birth. For example, any of the following:

  • Is this a high risk pregnancy (is mom older than 35)
  • Is mom short?
  • Gestational diabetes?

 

If any of these items are detected by the doctors, a shoulder dystocia birth should be taken into consideration and a plan must be implemented immediately. Doctors and hospitals can even be unprepared for a shoulder dystocia emergency if the risk signs are present.

 

CAN A PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY MARYLAND BIRTH INJURY LAWYER HELP?

 

For someone to be successful in a Maryland birth injury or childbirth injury case, you must prove certain things under Maryland law. The best way to look at these things is to break it down into elements. Basic Maryland injury law includes four basic elements which are

  • DUTY
  • BREACH OF DUTY
  • CAUSATION
  • DAMAGES

 

The above elements must be included for your injury case to be successful. If any one of these elements is missing, then you will have difficulty trying to prove your case. Your Maryland medical malpractice lawyer will be able to analyze your facts and help you understand whether the case is strong enough to move forward.

Additionally, to reviewing these elements, your Prince George’s County Maryland birth injury lawyer will assist you with choosing medical experts who will be able to give an opinion as to the standard of care and whether your treating doctors fell below the standard of care leading to your baby’s injury.

 

BOSTON LAW GROUP LLC YOUR PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY MARYLAND BIRTH INJURY LAWYERS

Maryland Medical Malpractice Lawyer Marcus Boston Joins The National Black Lawyers Top 100

Maryland Medical Malpractice Lawyer Marcus Boston Joins The National Black Lawyers Top 100

 

If you or a loved one’s baby has been a victim of a birth injury in Prince George’s County Maryland and you are ready to speak with a lawyer to discuss what happened with your baby, would be happy to listen to your story. We can be reached at 301-850-4832 and the phone call to us costs you absolutely nothing. We answer Maryland childbirth injury cases like yours all the time. We handle cases from:

 

  • Upper Marlboro, Maryland
  • Bowie, Maryland
  • Fort Washington, Maryland
  • Laurel, Maryland
  • Largo Maryland
  • Mitchellville, Maryland
  • Landover, Maryland
  • And the rest of Prince George’s County, Maryland