An Arkansas Birth Injury Lawyer notes that, while rare in the U.S, significant birth injuries can have devastating impacts on families. From emotional impact on new parents, to the costs of medical treatment and rehabilitation, to the life-long pain and disability that can be experienced by an affected child, a birth injury change families lives forever. When birth injuries result from the negligence of a health care provider, affected families can seek compensation with the help of an Arkansas child injury attorney.
For more information, contact the Arkansas Injury Attorney Group today. Our consultations are free, confidential and without any obligation on your part. We can help answer your questions, and if you choose to pursue a claim we can connect you with an affiliated birth injury lawyer who can assist you throughout the legal process.
Causes of Birth Injuries
According to MedScape, factors predisposing a child to birth injury include the following:
- Prima gravida
- Cephalopelvic disproportion, small maternal stature, maternal pelvic anomalies
- Prolonged or rapid labor
- Deep, transverse arrest of descent of presenting part of the fetus
- Oligohydramnios
- Abnormal presentation (breech)
- Use of midcavity forceps or vacuum extraction
- Versions and extractions
- Very ̶ low-birth-weight infant or extreme prematurity
- Fetal macrosomia
- Large fetal head
- Fetal anomalies
Significant birth injury accounts for less than 2% of neonatal deaths in the U.S. Some injuries have a better prognosis than others. While many birth injuries cannot be avoided no matter the degree of care provided to the mother and child, others are avoidable and caused by negligence on the part of a healthcare provider.
Common Birth Injuries
There are many different kinds of birth defects and other injuries that can occur in childbirth, to include bone fractures, excessive bruising, among other serious conditions, including:
- Birth Defects, which are congenital abnormalities or defects of body, structure, or function that exist at birth.
- Cerebral Palsy, which are motor conditions that affect nervous and brain system functions such as hearing, movement, and cognitive abilities. These conditions can vary in severity and often lead to permanent disabilities.
- Shoulder Dystocia, which is a delivery complication that happens when a baby’s neck suddenly retracts against the mother’s perineum, which causes the baby’s shoulder to catch onto the mother’s pubic bone. This can result in brain damage, nerve damage, infant death, Erb’s palsy or Klumpke’s palsy.
- Facial Paralysis, which can be caused by damaged facial nerve fibers from pressure on the baby’s face in the labor or birth process.
- Prenatal Asphyxia, which is newborn respiratory failure due to a lack of oxygen before, during, or right after birth.
- Head Trauma or Brain Injury from swelling of the scalp, bleeding in the brain, bruising, or hemorrhages.
- Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension, or PPHN, in newborns is a severe and sometimes even fatal condition that limits the amount of blood flow to the infant’s lungs, which can result in respiratory failure.
- Hypoxia or Anoxia, which is a condition where oxygen is decreased to an organ’s tissue even though there is sufficient blood flow to the tissue.
When a birth injury is caused by the negligence of a healthcare provider, an Arkansas birth injury lawyer can help affected families recover compensation for damages.
How an Arkansas Birth Injury Lawyer Can Help
Doctors and other healthcare providers have a duty to provide treatment according to a standard of care. If they fail to fulfill this duty, they commit medical malpractice and can be held liable in lawsuits for injuries that may result.
The parents of children who were born with birth injuries caused by medical malpractice may be entitled to compensation for damages, including the child’s:
- Medical expenses
- Pain, suffering, and mental anguish
- Scarring or physical deformities caused by the birth injury or treatment
If a child died due to birth injuries, family members may be entitled to compensation for the wrongful death of their loved one, including:
- Conscious pain and suffering of their child prior to death
- Pain, suffering, and mental anguish from the loss of a child
- Funeral expenses
Affected families are encouraged to seek the advice of an Arkansas birth injury lawyer to learn more about their rights and remedies.
The Time You Have to Pursue a Claim is Limited. Contact Us Today.
For more information, or to speak with an Arkansas birth injury lawyer, contact Attorney Group for Arkansas. You can fill out the form on this page, call us at the number listed at the top of the page, or email us at info@attorneygroup.com.
When you contact us, an attorney will follow up with you to speak with you about your case or answer questions that you might have. There is no cost or obligation to speak with us, and any information you provide will be kept confidential.
Please note that the law limits the time you have to pursue a claim or file a lawsuit for an injury. If you think you have a case, you should not delay taking action.
See our Frequently Asked Questions page for more information, and contact Attorney Group for Arkansas today.
