Was your child born with a hard swollen lump on their head? It may be a cephalohematoma. This happens when blood vessels under the scalp break and bleed under the skin. It may be a warning sign of a deeper head trauma.
If your child suffered complications related to a cephalohematoma, speak with the Birth Injury Lawyers Group. Our Georgia infant cephalohematoma attorneys will help you pay for your child’s medical care by filing a medical malpractice lawsuit on your behalf.
For a free legal consultation, call 1-800-222-9529
What Is a Cephalohematoma?
A hematoma is a swelling under the skin from broken blood vessels. You might know it as a blood blister. When this happens on the head (cephalo), it’s called a cephalohematoma. It’s the classic lump on the head after someone is hit.
But for a newborn, what could have hit their head and caused the trauma for one to form? That’s the question behind your malpractice case. If a doctor or nurse caused your child’s cephalohematoma through negligence, you deserve to get paid for its treatment with the help of a birth injury attorney in Georgia.
While most cephalohematomas clear up within a few weeks, there are complications that can happen like jaundice, anemia, calcification, and infection. Also, cephalohematoma may be the first sign of deeper trauma to the skull that could lead to brain damage.
Georgia Infant Cephalohematoma Lawyer Near Me 1-800-222-9529
Proving Malpractice in Cephalohematoma Cases
External trauma causes cephalohematoma. A doctor can cause this if they handle a baby incorrectly, especially with forceps or vacuum extraction deliveries. They may need these tools in an emergency to free a baby, but they can cause trauma to a child’s scalp and skull.
Your case hinges on whether a doctor’s actions were in line with the standards of practice set by other doctors. For example, causing a bump on the head may have been necessary to free a baby from a condition like shoulder dystocia, where they get stuck on the mother’s pelvis during birth. The dangers of shoulder dystocia may be riskier than the dangers of cephalohematoma.
If we can determine your doctor broke the standards of practice while caring for your child and caused their head bump, then you have a case for malpractice. As Georgia infant cephalohematoma lawyers, it’s our job and responsibility to find out if malpractice harmed your baby.
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How Much Could I Get for My Baby’s Cephalohematoma Case?
There are many factors that go into how much a case is worth. Even a simple question like paying for your child’s doctor’s visits has factors like:
- How bad was the injury?
- How long will it take to recover?
- Were there any complications?
- Did you have to take time off to go to appointments?
- Did you need to see specialists?
- How much did your insurance cover?
- Did your child need medical imaging, medication, or assistive devices?
Once our attorneys can perform an investigation of your child’s case and speak with medical experts, we can create an accurate assessment of how much your case is worth. We may also give you a preliminary estimate based on cases similar to yours.
There is no fee for consulting with one of our lawyers to see if you have a case and if it’s worth pursuing a claim. Most people underestimate how much a case is truly worth. Even if you think it’s just a bump on the head, it may be worth more than you think.
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Is Hiring a Birth Injury Attorney Expensive?
You do not have to pay our Georgia infant cephalohematoma attorneys unless you win compensation in your case. That’s our promise to you. The consultation is free and all our work for you is free until you win. If you get nothing because you lost your case, you will owe us nothing.
If you win, we take a percentage of your award or settlement as our fee. That number depends on how complex your case is, your odds of winning, and how much work we had to do to win. We can only get paid out of what you get, so your personal assets are safe.
If you win a huge settlement, your lawyer will also get a huge amount of money. Yet any competent attorney can justify why they chose their rate to you and how their help will net you more money than filing a case on your own. For malpractice cases, it’s almost impossible to win without the help of a lawyer.
Does Georgia Have a Malpractice Cap?
Before 2010, Georgia had malpractice caps. They were struck down as unconstitutional by the Georgia Supreme court in the case Atlanta Oculoplastic Surgery, P.C. v. Nestlehutt. There is no legal maximum to how much you can get from your child’s malpractice case.
Prior to this, the most you could get for non-economic damages was $350,000 from each health care provider you sued and $700,000 maximum. Economic damages were not limited.
What Is the Deadline for Starting a Case?
All lawsuits have a deadline for starting called the statute of limitations. This deadline preserves evidence and grants all citizens the right to a speedy trial. Injuries involving minors often have changes from the usual deadlines.
In Georgia, when a child under the age of five is injured, you must sue before the child’s seventh birthday. If the injury couldn’t be discovered right away, the deadline is the child’s 10th birthday.
Since most cephalohematomas clear up within a few weeks, a parent who starts a case for this condition will be well within the deadline. There are other changes to the deadline in the case of foreign bodies left inside a child, and potential legal challenges if it’s been five years since the incident.
Start Your Child’s Cephalohematoma Case Today
If your child has experienced complications because of a cephalohematoma, or you believe a doctor or nurse caused head trauma to your baby, it’s time to call the Birth Injury Lawyers Group. We will put you in touch with a Georgia infant cephalohematoma attorney who can help you.
Get started by contacting our offices to schedule your free consultation. We look forward to helping you get answers about what happened and help you get justice.
Call or text 1-800-222-9529
or complete a Free Case Evaluation form