Knowing how common birth injuries are can help prepare you for the worst. In the U.S., up to seven of every 1,000 births result in a birth injury. With this injury rate, tens of thousands of babies suffer injuries every year. While many of these injuries are mild, there are still thousands of significant injuries yearly, and even a minor injury can have lasting consequences.
If your baby was injured as a result of a medical professional’s negligence or misconduct, you may be entitled to compensation to help cover the cost of caring for a child with a disability. An experienced birth injury lawyer can help you pursue legal action against the liable party to recover the compensation your family needs.
Severity of Injuries Sustained During Birth
While many birth injuries only result in temporary harm, approximately three out of every seven birth injuries result in serious harm that can have long–lasting effects. Some birth injury statistics to be aware of include:
- There are around 30,000 birth injuries in the United States every year
- 80% of birth injuries are labeled as moderate to severe
- Birth injuries are the leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for 20% of infant deaths in the country each year (approximately 4,000)
Birth injuries can occur even if the medical team handling your delivery does everything right. Because of this, it can be difficult to determine if you have a legal case after your child suffers a birth injury.
An experienced birth injury lawyer can investigate your case to determine whether the doctor or any other medical professionals involved in the birth of your child were responsible for causing the injury.
"If your child was born with a birth injury, or cerebral palsy, we can help."
Bringing Legal Action After a Birth Injury
Birth injury cases are the most common medical malpractice lawsuits every year. Over 60% of obstetricians and gynecologists (OB-GYNs) in the U.S. have been the subject of a lawsuit at some point in their medical careers, with complications during childbirth making up the majority of these lawsuits.
The severity of the injury to your child can vary greatly, which is why there is a large range in the compensation recovered for these cases. However, it is common for successful lawsuits to recover over $1 million in damages in cases involving significant injuries and lasting harm.
Most Common Causes of Birth Injuries
Birth injuries can occur for a variety of reasons, and in several cases, the causes of injuries are still unknown. The majority of these injuries are caused by conditions in the mother or baby, but other causes, including medical malpractice, are not uncommon.
Maternal Complications
Some of the most common complications in mothers that can lead to birth injuries include:
- Advanced age (over 35 years old)
- Delayed or prolonged labor
- Maternal infections
- Gestational diabetes
- Obesity
- Placental abruption
Because of the heightened risk of these conditions, medical staff need to use extra precautions when handling cases involving any of these situations to help reduce the risk of a birth injury.
Infant Complications
Some of the most common complications directly involving the baby that can result in a birth injury include:
- Breech position with the feet or buttocks leading the way through the birth canal
- Oxygen deprivation
- Infections
Careful monitoring by medical staff is needed to reduce the risk of these complications leading to serious harm.
Medical Staff Complications
Many birth injuries are preventable. Even when there are complications beyond the control of the medical team, they may still be responsible for a birth injury if there was a foreseeable problem that they neglected to properly monitor.
An experienced birth injury lawyer can help you determine whether your child’s injury was the result of medical negligence.
"We know first-hand what you are going through."
Common Types of Birth Injuries
There are many types of birth injuries that can affect your child. Some of the most common birth injuries include:
- Cerebral palsy: A group of movement disorders resulting from a developing brain that suffered damage before, during, or shortly after birth.
- Brachial plexus nerve damage: Weakness, loss of motion, or paralysis in an arm caused by stretching, compressing, or tearing of the nerves that control movement and feeling for the affected limb.
- Infant brain damage: Brain damage in newborns is often caused by bleeding, infection, or oxygen deprivation during childbirth.
- Newborn cephalohematoma: The collection of blood between a newborn’s skull and scalp caused by ruptured blood vessels.
- Broken bones: Broken bones in a newborn can cause lasting problems if the bones fail to heal correctly
- Spinal cord injuries: Spinal cord injuries are serious and can result in paralysis or even the death of a newborn.
- Kernicterus: A rare but severe form of brain damage caused by an extreme level of bilirubin (a yellow pigment that forms when red blood cells are broken down by the body) in a newborn.
If your child suffered one of these or another type of injury during or shortly after childbirth, you may be entitled to take legal action. To recover compensation, you will need to prove that the injury was caused by negligence or misconduct.
"Our Birth Injury Lawyers have recovered over $750+ Million on behalf of our clients."
Get Help From an Experienced Birth Injury Lawyer Today
Birth injuries are far too common. While medical advances continue to decrease the risk of childbirth, injuries still occur at an alarming rate. Many birth injuries are preventable, resulting from negligence or misconduct by a member of the medical team. If your child was injured, the team at Birth Injury Lawyers Group can help you pursue compensation from the liable party.
Contact us today by phone or through our website to schedule a free consultation with a member of our legal team. We have recovered over $750 million in damages for the families we represent.
"We are committed to helping families who have suffered medical negligence."