Child Birth Injury: What You Need to Know by:Ivonne Jade Agustin

About 27 out of 1000 child births in the US result to injuries that permanently affect the child

. The parents of children whose lives have been ruined by medical malpractice may pursue claims with the help of lawyers who can legally represent them and make sure that they will receive justice.

Child Birth Injury

Many factors can affect the newborn's health. Here are some of them:

Unnoticed fetal distress

Placenta abruption

Failure to order Cesarean section

Medical malpractice

These factors are usually unpredictable and so a good doctor must make good split-second decisions that will be to the advantage of the newborn and his mother.

Childbirth is a delicate procedure that should be administered by professionals with the background and experience that will guide him to act accordingly in each situation. However, many cases of child birth injuries result from negligence of these professionals such as the following:

Bone Fractures

Clavicle fracture. This happens when the collarbone cracks or breaks because of the force exerted by the doctor. This injury can be treated by strapping the newborn's arm to his chest for a period of time.

Femur fracture. The newborn's thigh bone can be broken if it is twisted or if it is subjected to excessive pressure.

Nerve Injuries

Brachial palsy. Brachial Plexus are the nerves that go from the neck to the arms. This group of nerves are sometimes stretched and injured caused by pulling the arms or head of the baby during childbirth.

Brachial Plexus injury can result to weakness in one arm but it should heal before the third month. If weakness in the arm is still evident after the third month, the newborn might need to have surgery to correct the damage.

Facial Paralysis. The use of forceps during delivery can damage the infant's facial nerves. It can be noticed when the baby cries and the affected part of his face is not moving. If no improvement is noted after a few hours, surgery might be necessary.

Brain Injury

Hypoxia. It is the lack of oxygen that goes to the baby's brain during delivery can permanently damage his brain.

Cephalohematoma. This is bleeding within the skull or brain of the child which can also result to irreversible brain damage. It will prevent him from doing certain activities depending on the extent of the damage.

Handling Claims

Nothing can compensate for the permanent damages incurred by the newborn. But, parents must still make sure to claim for compensatory damages so that the newborn's future medical needs caused by the injury will be provided for accordingly by the negligent parties.

A good personal injury lawyer can assist them in finding experts in the medical field who can prove that the doctor or the medical staff was negligent and that the injury could have been avoided.

Compensatory damages for these cases are a relatively huge amount. It is crucial to find a good lawyer who can represent the best of your interest and make sure that the negligent party will not be careless by asking for punitive damages if the negligence committed is grave and others are at risk.

About the author

Our professional Los Angeles lawyers specialize in personal injury cases including child birth injury. For consultation, log on to our website at http://www.mesrianilaw.com/ and avail of our free case evaluation.

Child Birth Injury: What You Need to Know by:Ivonne Jade Agustin

About 27 out of 1000 child births in the US result to injuries that permanently affect the child

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