Physicians Pay Out On Lawsuit Alleging Medical Mistake Led to Child’s Erb’s Palsy Injury
Posted March 16th, 2010 by brownOne variety of lawsuit commonly encountered by a birth injury lawyer is the Erb’s palsy injury. This is an injury to the nerves in the baby’s shoulder which impact the shoulder, the arm and the hand. In some instances the child will have to have surgery. Despite surgery, however, some babies will be left with irreversible injury to the arm. When evaluating these cases an erbs palsy attorney takes into account a number of factors. Among the factors is if the physician involved had data indicating there may be complications from a vaginal delivery and took appropriate steps to avoid them.
In one reported lawsuit, for instance, the baby’s mother had previously delivered 2 additional children both of whom had been large babies. The pregnant woman was recorded as being borderline for gestational diabetes in the fourth month of her pregnancy. She had disroportionate weight gain in the pregnancy. The unborn child had been documented larger than expected at 4 months into the pregnancy and to be in the ninetieth percentile for weight. The mother’s physicians scheduled her for induced vaginal labor to take place during her 40th week of pregnancy.
Once admitted to the hospital for the scheduled vaginal delivery several worrisome signs were detected. Yet, the doctor did not try to examine the pregnant woman again for gestational diabetes or to approximate the unborn child’s weight before inducing her. The physician did not change and perform a C-section.
Hospital files revealed that shoulder dystocia was present and that subsequent to delivery of the child’s head, instead of attempting a regularly applied procedure, the doctor just applied suprapubic pressure to facilitate delivery. The infant weighed ten pounds 10 ounces and had a head circumference in the ninetieth percentile. The baby sustained Erb’s palsy. When she got older her arm atrophied from her inability to use it. She has developmental delays and she has cerebral palsy. According to law firm that pursued the lawsuit reported that the matter settled for $900,000.
The above is not medical or legal advice. You ought to check with a doctor right away should you think there is a complication with your pregnancy or your child has a health issue. Consult a medical negligence lawyer should you believe your child was hurt due to an error by a physician or other well being care professional.
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