Birth Injury Lawyers
Most doctors provide a high standard of care to expectant mothers, but often things happen before or during childbirth that cause major injuries to your baby. When those actions are negligent and result in damage to the baby or the mother, there is potentially a legal case in which they can be compensated.
Typical birth injuries are caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain, being handled improperly during the birth, or other negligent actions by the medical team. Oxygen deprivation is one of the main causes of birth injuries and often results in brain damage, lung disease, and other devastating injuries and in the worst cases, death.
It is the job of the medical team to closely follow the mother and baby’s vitals and track any changes in the pregnancy, so they can adjust their care to ensure the highest level of treatment. If that doesn’t happen, it often results in an emergency situation that requires a C-section or other emergency care to ensure the safety of the baby and mother.
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Types of Birth Injuries
Birth Injuries in Charlotte are a very common occurance, and if you are one of the unfortunate families impacted by premature birth or a birth injury due to negligence, these are the guidelines to follow to establish whether you have a medical malpractice case:
- Failing to properly monitor the health of the pregnant mother or baby prior to birth
- Failing to induce labor or recommend a c-section that may have avoided injury
- Failure to use delivery tools properly such as extractors, forceps or other equipment
- Excessive force used by doctor or nurse during birth
There are two common injuries that come from these careless actions of the medical team:
Erb’s Palsy: Baby’s shoulder is pinned behind mother’s pelvic bone during delivery. If this happens, there are certain actions that the doctor can take to avoid injury. If too much force is applied or the action is performed improperly, it can cause damage to the brachial plexus nerves, which can result in Erb’s Palsy. The baby in that case loses some of all use of their arm.
Cerebral Palsy: Caused primarily by lack of oxygen, resulting in brain damage. This can be due to improper monitoring of the heartbeat during the birthing process. Other factors can come into play, but cerebral palsy is a devastating birth injury caused by damage to the motor function parts of the brain not getting the required oxygen. The result is difficulty walking or talking in addition to the possibility of seizures.
Other birth injuries may include:
- Spinal cord or vertebrae damage resulting in paralysis
- Brain damage
- Internal bleeding
- Injuries caused by forceps
- C-section injuries
- Prescription/medication errors
- Improper treatment of infections in baby or mother
- Injuries caused by being improperly induced
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If you or your child have experienced a birth injury,
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Compensation for Birth Injuries
Birth injuries can have devastating consequences that effect the injured person their entire life. It’s important that you are compensated not only for any medical expenses and costs during the hospital stay, but also taking into account the longer term expenses.
Some longer term expenses that come with birth injuries include:
- Regular medical care (appointments, medication or procedures)
- Accessibility equipment (wheelchairs, oxygen tanks or prosthetics)
- In-home health care
- Handicapped-equipped vehicles and home modifications
- Physical, Occupational, or Speech therapy
For patients with cerebral palsy, the lifetime costs of these additional can easily surpass $1 million. That’s why it is so important for families dealing with these and other birth injuries to call the best personal injury lawyers in Charlotte to go after those responsible and get the compensation you deserve.
Compensation Limits
North Carolina legislation states that non-economic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits is limited to $500,000. Non-economic damages are those things like pain and suffering and emotional distress caused by the injury. Economic damages like medical bills and lost wages are not limited.
We understand that no amount of money can ever make up for what you lost, but it can help alleviate some of the stress over being able to provide the level of treatment your child needs to live a full life.
