According to the National Healthcare Quality Report (AHRQ), 28,000 infants per year suffer a birth injury in the U.S. These are alarming statistics, especially when you consider that 50% of all birth injuries can be prevented by planning for obstetrical risk factors that could affect the delivery of the baby.
What Causes a Birth Injury?
Sometimes during birth, a baby may suffer physical injuries, a difficult birth, health problems, and other issues that could cause a birth injury. However, sometimes these injuries are not related to the mother or the baby’s health but are caused by a medical professional’s wrongdoing. When a medical professional acts with negligence during childbirth, this means they did not act with the level of care as someone in the same position would have acted; then the family may have a personal injury claim against the negligent professional.
Failure to Diagnose or Misdiagnosis of Medical Conditions
Medical negligence during pregnancy can occur when a doctor fails to diagnose a medical condition in the baby or the mother. Medical professionals should properly screen the mother for dangerous conditions such as preeclampsia, maternal infection, or diabetes, conditions which could put the mother’s and baby’s lives at risk. If one of these medical conditions wasn’t properly diagnosed before birth, it could cause complications during childbirth and result in brain injuries to the baby. Other health problems that a medical practitioner should regularly assess include:
- High and low blood pressure
- Over weight
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Infections
- Iron deficiency
- Depression and anxiety
- Hyperemesis Gravidarum
- Placenta Previa
Misuse of Forceps
Forceps are a tool used by medical professionals to gently guide a baby’s head out the birth canal. If used improperly, forceps can cause serious injuries, such as brain damage, swelling in the brain, brain bleeds, or broken bones. Some of these injuries could result in permanent brain damage, developmental delays, cerebral palsy, and other damages. Physicians must be properly trained and have experience using forceps to avoid injuring the baby, a reckless medical professional could seriously injure a baby if forceps are not used correctly.
Bone Fractures During Birth
One of the most common birth injuries is newborn bone fractures. Bone fractures can be caused by a medical practitioner’s tools used during delivery, such as forceps. Fractures in babies commonly occur in the collarbone and upper arm bone. Some of them can heal on their own and others do require medical treatment.
Lack of Oxygen to the Brain
Another example of common injuries babies can suffer during birth is a lack of oxygen or blood flow to the brain. If a doctor acted in a careless manner and didn’t act quickly enough in these situations, the baby could suffer from brain damage caused by the lack of oxygen. Lack of oxygen to the baby can be caused by anemia during pregnancy, baby stuck in the birth canal for a long period of time during delivery, pinched placenta during birth, low blood pressure during pregnancy, medical issues in a premature baby, and others.