The last thing any parent expects as they enter the hospital to start the birthing process is that it will result in their child’s brain injury at birth. The excitement of new parents getting ready to meet their child becomes a tragedy when they learn that their child suffered brain injuries during the birthing process due to medical negligence.
If you feel that your doctor or another medical professional involved in the birthing process of your child was negligent in any way, you may have the legal right to pursue compensation for your child’s brain injuries by filing a medical malpractice claim. Learn how a Los Angeles medical negligence attorney at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you. Call us at (800) 794-0444.
Causes of Brain Injuries at Birth
Some children are simply born with serious medical conditions through no fault of the doctor, medical care providers, or hospital. When this is not the case, medical negligence may have played a role.
Medical negligence can occur either from actions taken (or not taken) during or immediately following the birth process. Consider the following types of brain injuries that often occur from birth as a result of medical negligence.
Cerebral Palsy
The Mayo Clinic explains that cerebral palsy is a brain injury to an infant’s brain that can occur for multiple reasons, including trauma due to doctor negligence during the birthing process.
Birth asphyxia and hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy are some causes of brain injury at birth that result in the development of cerebral palsy. Brain damage that results from cerebral palsy is typically lifelong and permanent in nature.
Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy
Some of the symptoms of cerebral palsy will include challenges with posture, muscle tone, reflexes, muscle control, coordination, and balance.
Additionally, people diagnosed with cerebral palsy may struggle with gross and fine motor skills over their lifetime and may need assistance with tasks throughout their lives. Of course, the severity of cerebral palsy will always be completely different for every person.
What Causes Cerebral Palsy?
Cerebral palsy occurs as a result of not receiving enough oxygen to the brain. When this occurs in an infant, permanent neurological damage happens, resulting in cerebral palsy. Unfortunately, some cases of cerebral palsy are the direct result of medical negligence during and immediately after the birthing process.
Some of the causes of cerebral palsy that result from medical negligence may include:
- Failure to perform a Cesarean section in a timely manner
- Failure to attach a fetal heart rate monitor to the mother
- Failure to actually monitor and examine the fetal heart rate monitor for signs of distress
- Failure to identify or handle a prolapsed umbilical cord
- Failure to discover or treat an infection (in the mother or child)
- Failure to use extraction tools such as forceps and vacuum extractors appropriately
As a result of these types of medical negligence, a child may suffer oxygen deprivation, which results in the development of cerebral palsy. The National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) indicates that the lifelong complications of those suffering from cerebral palsy may include:
- Seizures
- Delayed growth
- Intellectual disabilities
- Impaired vision
- Spinal deformities
- Hearing loss
- Speech disorders
- Long-term illnesses (such as pneumonia and lung and heart disease)
- Contractures,
- Malnutrition
If you feel your healthcare professional caused your child to develop cerebral palsy as a result of medical negligence, consider what a Los Angeles medical negligence attorney r at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can do for your case.
For a free legal consultation with a medical negligence attorney serving Los Angeles, call 800-794-0444
Medical Conditions Resulting from Oxygen Deprivation
According to Frontiers in Neuroscience, other brain injuries may also occur when a child is deprived of oxygen either during or immediately following the birthing process. If a child does not exit the birth canal in a timely manner and remains stuck, they will have a greater chance of being deprived of oxygen.
As a result, any significant amount of oxygen deprivation can cause serious and lifelong brain injuries. Some of these brain injuries result in the inability of a child to walk, control muscles, control their own posture, or even control their own movements.
Additionally, some cases of oxygen deprivation result in either total or partial blindness, hearing loss, serious learning disabilities, or other serious medical complications that may last throughout their life.
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Statute of Limitations to File a Medical Malpractice Claim in California
The state of California has a deadline, called the statute of limitations, by which a person must file a medical malpractice claim. While you may have the right to file a claim against the medical malpractice insurance of the healthcare provider, in some cases, the negotiations between a medical malpractice insurance carrier and a victim of medical negligence prove legally complex.
In some cases, the medical malpractice insurance carrier refuses to pay the victim a fair settlement amount regarding the injuries and losses associated with the brain injuries suffered by their child.
According to the Code of Civil Procedure Section 340.5, a victim has three years following the date of the medical malpractice regarding the birth injury in order to file a medical malpractice claim in a court of law to seek compensation and justice for their child’s injuries.
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Learn How a Los Angeles Medical Negligence Attorney Can Help
You may feel devastated at the diagnosis your child received regarding their brain injuries received at birth.
If you have any suspicion that those brain injuries resulted from the medical negligence of a healthcare provider, consider how a Los Angeles medical negligence attorney at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you seek compensation. Call us at (800) 794-0444.
Call or text 800-794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
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Ten California Hospitals Fined for Major Errors
A recent Los Angeles Times news article revealed that the California Department of Public Health issued fines between $10,000 to $100,000 to ten California hospitals for mistakes occurring in 2010 and 2011 that caused patients severe injury or death. Among the facilities fined were two Los Angeles County and two Orange County hospitals. The amount of penalties totaled $785,000 for mistakes that included failing to call for help when a patient started bleeding excessively, leaving surgical objects in patients, and removing the wrong kidney.
